The top apps being downloaded in Ukraine right now are Signal, the private messaging app, Bridgefy, which enables communications without the internet via mesh networking, Maps.me, an offline mapping app, and several “walkie-talkie” apps that enable free communication. without sign-ups or personal information.
In other words, Ukrainians are preparing for either the loss of the internet in their country, or the closure of the free internet behind a new digital iron curtain.
SOLEDAR, UKRAINE – A 2015 picture of Ukrainian military units (Photo by Scott Peterson / Getty Images)
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“Apps surging to the top of the charts in Ukraine are Walkie-Talkie apps, VoIP apps, offline navigation apps, VPN apps, Radio comms apps,” said Adam Blacker, a VP at app analytics company Apptopia. said today on Twitter. “Many of these apps are enabling offline communication via traditional radio signal or via Bluetooth. These are apps we normally see trending during natural disasters like hurricanes and earthquakes. ”
Russian has invaded Ukraine, killing multiple soldiers and civilians, and sources have told Forbes that they expect Ukraine’s power and internet to go down. Parts of Odessa have already lost power.
Here are the top ten free apps by downloads as of today:
Apptopia’s top 10 free apps by downloads today in Ukraine.
John Koetsier
Some of the apps, like Bridgefy, use Bluetooth to create a mesh network that does not depend on a functioning internet and cannot be easily disrupted by authorities. Hong Kong protesters used it when China took tighter control of the city in 2019.
From my post at that time:
“The app can connect people via standard Bluetooth across an entire city, thanks to a mesh network. Chatting is speediest with people who are close, of course, within a hundred meters (330 feet), but you can also chat with people who are farther away. Your messages will simply “hop” via other Bridgefy users’ phones until they find your intended target. While you can chat privately with contacts, you can also broadcast to anyone within range, even if they are not a contact. “
Some of the apps are ones to track airplanes, perhaps an unlikely-to-succeed attempt to see where the Russian air force is attacking.
Apps that are getting fewer downloads are games, social networking apps like Facebook, entertainment apps like TikTok, office apps like Zoom, and dating apps. All of that is understandable when the country and its citizens are facing violence and destruction.
In the most recent news, Russian forces are advancing into Ukraine’s capital city Kyiv while facing stiff resistance from Ukrainian troops and civilian volunteers while the European Union is freezing Russian assets, including those owned by Vladimir Putin. In addition, Russia has been banned from this year’s Eurovision contest, and the Formula 1 Russian Grand Prix has been canceled.
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