Stuns in Russia due to increasingly frequent internet outages. Some resort to paging, others make fun of trouble

Moscow, a city of 13 million people, has experienced unprecedented internet and mobile service outages since early March, and the problems appear to have had a ripple effect, making it difficult to make voice calls or send text messages, CNN reported.

Residents of the Russian capital complain that they cannot navigate through the center or use their favorite smartphone applications. Out of panic, some buy walkie-talkies, paper maps or even pagers.

Problems of this kind have also been registered in other regions of Russia, especially in the provinces on the border with Ukraine, which has launched incursions and attacks on Russian territory to counter the invasion of Russian forces. Some areas have reported no mobile internet since the summer.

The difference is that the recent outages have affected Russia's main centers of wealth and power, Moscow and its second-largest city, St. Petersburg. Public officials say the disruption of mobile internet service in the capital and other areas is part of a security effort to counter the Ukrainians' “increasingly sophisticated methods” of attack.

Unlike the situation in Iran, where the authorities ordered a general blackout, Russia has not completely restricted access to the Internet. Russians can still use Wi-Fi.

Jokes about sending letters with the help of carrier pigeons or using smartphones as ping-pong paddles have gone viral on social networks.

“No one understands why”

There are several theories as to the causes of the outages. One of the speculations concerns the possibility that the authorities will test their ability to repress possible public protests if unpopular military mobilization measures for the war in Ukraine are reintroduced.

Others wonder if the restrictions reflect a heightened climate of fear and paranoia inside the Kremlin. There are also Russians who fear that internet outages could precede a wider digital blackout.

“It feels like the ground is being pulled from under our feet,” said Svetlana, a resident of a Moscow suburb who relies on a continuous stream of data to monitor the blood sugar levels of her diabetic son, Vanya, 8. She uses the Telegram messaging app to send him detailed instructions on how much insulin to take.

“This restriction of the Internet seems so illogical,” Svetlana added, complaining that “nobody understands why or for what purpose” these outages are happening.