WhatsApp makes free proxy service available to bypass internet censorship

WhatsApp will make it possible to set up proxies for users from countries where a blockade applies. In countries where WhatsApp does not work, users can connect to proxies set up by companies or human rights organizations.

Proxies can be set up by volunteers or voluntary organizations. They can then offer the proxy for other users, whatever according to whatsapp mainly intended for countries in which the service is blocked. “As we usher in 2023 with private messages and conversations, we realize that there are still many people who cannot do this due to internet blocks,” the company writes. The proxy services are designed to bypass them.

WhatsApp has put a guide online which it links to a GitHub repo with more explanation. Volunteers can set up their own Docker container in which the proxy runs. It is also possible via Helm set up a Kubernetes cluster. The proxies can be offered on ports 80 and 443, or on 5222, the default port used by WhatsApp itself. Developers can then send a domain name or IP address to those ports on a server to expose the proxy.

Users using the proxy route their WhatsApp traffic through that server. That makes it more difficult for repressive regimes to block WhatsApp, for example during protests. This happened, for example, in Iran, where large-scale protests have been held in recent months that have been crushed by the regime. WhatsApp cites those specific protests as the reason for offering the proxy service. It does require users to know the specific details for a proxy, and there’s no guarantee that proxy won’t also be taken offline if enough people use it. In addition, proxies cannot be used at all if a general internet block is set up in a country or region.