India blocked Telegram this week over concerns that fraudsters were using it to target exam candidates with fake papers and scams ahead of a major university entrance test retake. The Indian government said blocking the entire app was necessary to stop the spread of exam-related fraud.
The day India announced the restriction became the biggest day for VPN app downloads in the country since at least early 2025. According to TechCrunch's reporting on the ban, downloads jumped 49%—from an average of 139,000 to 208,000 in a single day.
Proton VPN dominated the surge. App Store downloads climbed 113% while Google Play saw a 64% rise. Turbo VPN followed, with Apple downloads jumping 85% and Google Play rising 35%. The demand was large enough that Proton VPN rose from 18th place to 5th in Apple's Utilities rankings in two days.
Proton reported daily registrations from India spiked 120% above normal levels the day after the ban, while hourly signups jumped 150% the evening the restriction was announced. Windscribe, another VPN provider, saw signups peak roughly 100% above baseline.
Telegram challenged the ban in Delhi High Court, arguing that authorities should target specific fraudulent content rather than block the entire platform for millions of legitimate users. The court upheld the restriction on Friday.
The ban runs through June 22. Users simply turned to other tools to stay online.
