How to bypass censorship and connect to Tor from different countries or regions

In some countries, Internet service providers or national firewalls block direct access to the Tor network. Tor Browser includes built-in support for bridges and other circumvention tools, but in censored regions you may still need to select or request a bridge to connect successfully. This page offers country-specific guidance on getting Tor Browser connected when access is censored.

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China

Below are reliable ways to obtain Tor Browser and connect from within China.

1. Get Tor Browser safely

للحصول على نسخة مُحدَّثة من متصفح تور، جرب برنامج تيليجرام الآلي أولاً: @gettor_bot. If that doesn't work, you can send an email to gettor@torproject.org with the subject "windows", "macos", "linux" or "android" for the respective operating system.

(Optional but recommended). Verify Tor Browser's signature.

2. Try Connection Assist first

بعد التثبيت، سيحاول متصفح تور الاتصال بشبكة تور. إذا تم حظر تور في موقعك، فسيحاول مساعد الاتصال (Connection Assist) ربط الاتصال تلقائيا باستخدام الجسر أو من خلال الناقل ”ندفة الثلج“. ولكن إذا لم ينجح ذلك، فستكون الخطوة الثانية هي الحصول على جسر يعمل في الصين.

3. Bridge options that work in China

  • Try connecting to Tor with WebTunnel bridges. WebTunnel makes the traffic look like a regular HTTPS connection to a webpage server giving the impression that the user is simply browsing the web. Support for WebTunnel bridges is available on Tor Browser for Desktop and Android, Tails and Tor VPN Beta.

To obtain WebTunnel bridges:

  • Send a message to @GetBridgesBot on Telegram. المس 'Start' أو أكتب ‎/start في سطر المحادثة. Next, tap on 'webtunnel bridges' or type /webtunnel and copy the bridge addresses.
  • Visit our bridges website. From the "Advanced options" select "WebTunnel", from the dropdown, as the pluggable transport. ثم اضغط على "احصل على جسور".

For WebTunnel bridges obtained via Telegram or from the Bridges website, follow instructions to enter the bridge addresses in Tor Browser. If that does not work, check your Tor logs and try the following options.

  • Snowflake: uses ephemeral proxies to connect to the Tor network. إنه متاح في متصفح تور و تطبيقات تور الأخرى مثل برنامج أوربوتْ. يمكنك تحديد الناقل ”ندفة الثلج“ (Snowflake) من قائمة الجسور المدمجة في متصفح تور.
  • meek: makes it look like you are browsing a website instead of using Tor. ومع ذلك، نظرا لوجود قيود على سعة القناة، سيكون هذا الخيار بطيئا للغاية. You can select meek from Tor Browser's built-in bridges dropdown.

4. Getting help

إذا كنت بحاجة إلى مساعدة، يمكنك أيضا التوصال من فريقنا عبر تيليجرام https://t.me/TorProjectSupportBot‏‫ و Signal. Or send an email to frontdesk@torproject.org with the phrase "connect cn" in the subject of the email.

Russia

Since December 2021, many Internet providers in Russia have been blocking direct connections to the Tor network, so users generally need to connect through a bridge. The obfs4 bridge type remains the most widely used in Russia, but some mobile ISPs have begun blocking it through Deep Package Inspection (DPI). In those cases, switching to WebTunnel bridges hosted on less well-known providers (rather than major hosts like OVH, Hetzner, Linode, or DigitalOcean) can help you bypass these restrictions.

يمكنك العثور على إرشادات محدثة حول كيفية التحايل على الرقابة والاتصال بـتور من روسيا على دليل المنتدى الخاص بنا: تم حظر تور في روسيا - كيفية التحايل على الرقابة.

للحصول على نسخة مُحدَّثة من متصفح تور، جرب برنامج تيليجرام الآلي أولاً: @gettor_bot.

إذا كنت بحاجة إلى مساعدة، تواصل معنا عبر تيليجرام، واتساب، Signal، أو عبر البريد الإلكتروني frontdesk@torproject.org. When you reach out, include "private bridge ru" in your message (subject line or chat text) so our team can send you the right instructions more quickly.

Turkmenistan

In Turkmenistan, direct access to the Tor network is heavily restricted. The most reliable way to connect with Tor Browser is usually through Snowflake, and using AMP cache as the front domain. It's also possible to connect using obfs4 bridges, but users need to find bridges hosted on less-well-known providers rather than major hosting companies, since they are frequently blocked.

للحصول على نسخة مُحدَّثة من متصفح تور، جرب برنامج تيليجرام الآلي أولاً: @gettor_bot.

إذا كنت بحاجة إلى مساعدة، تواصل معنا عبر تيليجرام، واتساب، Signal، أو عبر البريد الإلكتروني frontdesk@torproject.org. When you reach out, include "private bridge tm" in your message (subject line or chat text) so our team can send you the right instructions more quickly.

Belarus

If you are connecting to Tor from Belarus, there are several options you can try.

نزِّل متصفح تور

To get an updated version of Tor Browser, try our Telegram bot: @GetTor_bot.

1. Direct connection

The first and easiest option to try is a direct connection to Tor, which could be available on some ISPs. Open Tor Browser and click or tap "Connect".

2. Using a Tor bridge

If the direct connection to the Tor network didn't work, you may need to use a Tor bridge. At the moment, we aren't aware of any specific bridge blocking mechanism in Belarus, so you can use obfs4, WebTunnel bridges, or snowflake.

Obfs4

To get obfs4 bridges please use our Telegram bot: @getbridgesbot.

Start the chat with the bot and type the command /obfs4.

WebTunnel

To get WebTunnel bridges please use our Telegram bot: @getbridgesbot.

Start the chat with the bot and type the command /webtunnel.

ندفة الثلج (Snowflake)

If the direct connection doesn't work, try using Snowflake.

Using Snowflake with Tor Browser for Android

  1. Tap "Configure connection" when on the "Connect to Tor" screen.
  2. Navigate to the "Connection" section in Settings.
  3. Tap "Config Bridge" to configure a bridge.
  4. With the "Use a Bridge" option select "Snowflake".
  5. Return to the "Connect to Tor" screen and tap "Connect".

Using Snowflake with Tor Browser for Desktop

If you have Tor Browser running,

  1. Click "Settings" in the hamburger menu (≡) and then go to "Connection" in the sidebar.
  2. In the "Bridges" section, from the option "Choose from one of Tor Browser's built-in bridges" select "Snowflake".

Getting support

إذا كنت بحاجة إلى مساعدة، تواصل معنا عبر تيليجرام، واتساب، Signal، أو عبر البريد الإلكتروني frontdesk@torproject.org. When you reach out, include "private bridge by" in your message (subject line or chat text) so our team can send you the right instructions more quickly.