After Getting Blocked in Iran, Signal Wants You to Help Bypass Nation's Restrictions

Do you want to help the regime that treats women badly? Now is the time for you to get your chance.

Users are being asked to help make the service available in Iran. The most secure, privacy-centered communication platform is offered by Signal. The app was blocked in Iran after it became more popular there. The company is asking its global user base for help in supporting an ad-hoc network of proxy server that can support the privacy-protecting service.

"If you are willing and able, please follow the instructions below to set up a proxy server that will enable people in Iran to connect to Signal," said the company's new-ish president. It's our hope that this will help people in Iran communicate on Signal, while we continue to explore other techniques that will work there.

A proxy server is a middleman that gets between clients and their origin server. This arrangement allows for requests to be forwarded by the proxy rather than the origin server. Proxies can be used for a variety of reasons, but in this case they are being used to circumvent the restrictions put in place by the Iranian government.

There's a reason Iranians might want signal right now. The nation's police are cracking down on protesters. A young woman died in the custody of Iran's morality police, a domestic law enforcement service that regulates the nation's dress code. Amini was arrested after being seen wearing her hijab. The death of Amini has torn the country asunder, with differing accounts of her death. Reports claim that she was beaten to death by the government.