Following messaging app crackdown, Viber appears to be inaccessible for some Chinese users [UPDATED]

(Update: 18:00 31 October: Looks like we’re in a grey area here, which isn’t uncommon in cases like these. Viber CEO Talmon Marco replied to Tech in Asia‘s inquiries writing “We believe Viber is blocked.” However, it appears as though some users can circumvent the disruptions. “We believe that right now the Viber service is operating for users with the latest version of Viber for iOS and Android,” says Marco. “Other versions may not work in China,” he adds. Viber has not been forthcoming in elaborating further.)

It’s been a tough year for popular messaging apps in China. Japan’s Line and Korea’s KakaoTalk have been blocked by the Great Firewall, along with photo-sharing app Instagram. Today it looks Chinese authorities might have taken aim at another chat app – Viber.

The usual signs are there. Posts on social media reveal users complaining that they can’t access the app as they normally would. From mainland China, Tech in Asia entered Viber’s homepage in a browser but can’t connect to its website. It works with a VPN or proxy on. A couple of people say it works via China Unicom’s 3G, but that’s not the case in our test of that network. (Updated to add in an extra screenshot below, and added details to the proceeding paragraph).

In our tests, one workmate on Android (using the Viber app from Google Play on a OnePlus phone) is not having any issues with Viber, but my iPhone version of Viber shows all the signs of a web blockade. When trying to send messages on Viber, this is what some of us see within mainland China:

And the sign-up process is also now blocked for some in China:

Although Viber is not so popular in China as some other areas (WeChat is the nation’s chat app of choice), a number of people on Weibo have noticed the block. One Weibo user this afternoon lamented, “When Line got blocked, I changed to Viber, and now Viber’s blocked too. What on earth! Now I can’t contact customers. Fuck!”

Anti-censorship crusaders Greatfire.org ran a test assessing the app’s accessibility from China. As of today, the test determines the app has been blocked.