Amnezia VPN

Last updated
Amnezia VPN
Repository https://github.com/amnezia-vpn/
Written inC++
Operating system
Available inEnglish, Russian, Ukrainian, Chinese, Arabic, Burmese
License GNU GPL 3.0
Website Official website

Amnezia VPN is a free and open-source application that allows users to create a personal VPN using their own server. It uses the OpenVPN, WireGuard, Shadowsocks, IKEv2 and Cloak protocols.

Contents

The setup takes place using a graphical user interface. [1]

History

Amnezia VPN is a project by Internet activists from Russia, who are searching for solutions to resist state censorship. The first version was designed during the Demhack hackathon in 2020, [2] held by digital human rights activists from Roskomsvoboda. [3]

Features

Amnezia VPN supports modern blocking bypass protocols and works even where other VPNs don't work - in China, Iran, and Turkmenistan. For countries with low internet censorship, Amnezia supports WireGuard and OpenVPN. In 2022, Amnezia VPN successfully passed the security audit conducted by 7ASecurity. Amnezia published free access to not only the source codes of the client part, but also the source codes of the server part. [4]

Amnezia introduced its own AmneziaWG protocol, a latest addition, which is an improved version of a popular WireGuard protocol and was designed to be used in the world's harshest internet climates. [5]

Amnezia VPN does not require users to register, allowing all features to be accessed anonymously. It does not keep any logs of user activity and does not track users or use their personal data for any purposes. [5]

Technology

AmneziaFree

AmneziaFree is a Telegram bot for free access to blocked media and social networks websites. The developers launched AmneziaFree in March 2022, when Russian authorities started blocking media and global social platforms based on military censorship. [7] [8] One year after the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, AmneziaFree had almost 100,000 active users. [3]

Amnezia service is available in Turkey, granting access to blocked websites deemed socially significant. The platform facilitates access to censored platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, X, Pastebin.com, WikiLeaks, and Booking.com, along with websites of independent media outlets and NGOs banned in Turkey. [9]

Reception

In April 2023, Wired magazine featured Amnezia VPN as an open-source VPN circumventing Russian censorship. It described that Amnezia VPN being a service that allows users to set up their own servers, making it harder for the Russian Government to block access to the outside world. [10]

Mike Williams of TechRadar wrote that Amnezia's website has simple and clear setup instructions, starting with some suggestions on where to buy your own server. [11]

References

  1. Williams, Mike (September 11, 2021). "I built my own VPN server - and this is what I learned". TechRadar.
  2. "Privacy Accelerator". Privacy Accelerator. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
  3. 1 2 Borak, Masha. "The Open Source VPN Out-Maneuvering Russian Censorship". Wired via www.wired.com.
  4. "Amnezia-wg - alternative to WireGuard, OpenVPN, Shadowsocks". Cloudron Forum. 2023-10-14. Retrieved 2024-04-03.
  5. 1 2 Vainilavičius, Justinas (December 7, 2023). "Amnezia VPN adds new protocol to evade censors more easily". Cybernews. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  6. amnezia-vpn/amnezia-client, Amnezia VPN, 2024-04-12, retrieved 2024-04-12
  7. "VPN-сервисы предоставят россиянам бесплатный доступ к заблокированным медиа и соцсетям". Meduza.
  8. "VPN-сервисы дают россиянам бесплатный доступ к СМИ – DW – 29.03.2022". dw.com.
  9. Barış (2024-12-05). "Amnezia Free launches in Turkey, enabling access to censored websites". Freewebturkey (in Turkish). Retrieved 2025-04-10.
  10. Borak, Masha. "The Open Source VPN Out-Maneuvering Russian Censorship". Wired. ISSN   1059-1028 . Retrieved 2024-04-03.
  11. Mike Williams (2021-09-11). "I built my own VPN server - and this is what I learned". TechRadar. Retrieved 2024-04-03.