Security News > 2022 > August > Activists use torrents to spread uncensored news to Russian pirates
A team of Ukrainian cyber-activists has thought of a simple yet potentially effective way to spread uncensored information in Russia: bundling torrents with text and video files pretending to include installation instructions.
The initiative creates torrents that contain a text file with a list of credible news sources that Russians can trust and instructions on downloading and installing a VPN to secure anonymity from ISPs.
Call Russia was eventually partially mapped and blocked by the Russian state, but torrents are a field that's currently exploding in the country as a method of obtaining content presently unavailable in the country.
The situation has created a fertile ground for Torrents of Truth to reach a sizable userbase without the Russian state having an easy way to stop it.
At this time, Torrents of Truth has bundled 21 torrents with its text and video, selecting just-released movies, the latest episodes of popular shows, and pro-grade software tools.
The torrents are uploaded to popular torrent tracking platforms that pirates use for searching, and thanks to volunteers who seed them aggressively, they rise in popularity and rank high in tracker results.