The entire situation with TikTok potentially being banned in the US has resulted in a hot mess. The video app has gone from having one potential buyer to two. It is also looking to sue the US government over the upcoming ban. As a result of the situation, VPN usage has also seen a sudden increase.
At least, based on the numbers provided by one service, ExpressVPN. TechCrunch reports that the service provider’s numbers have gone up by 10% in the US on a week-over-week basis. Other markets have also seen increase in the company’s use numbers, with Japan seeing a 19% increase and Australia getting a 41% increase. The same also applies to India, with ExpressVPN getting a 22% increase in traffic after the country banned TikTok back in late June.
VPNs have commonly been used to bypass all sorts of internet-related restrictions. So on that front, this increase in numbers for ExpressVPN isn’t surprising. It also wouldn’t be surprising if other VPN providers saw similar increase in numbers. But it’s not a surefire way to bypass restrictions.
In this case, it’s probably okay, but if you’re in China and are trying to access apps banned by the Great Firewall, you’ll know that VPNs aren’t that easy a solution.
(Source: TechCrunch. Image: ExpressVPN)
