Hello everyone, This is the report from user support team for the month of March 2026. Note: (↑), (↓) and (-) are indicating if the number of tickets we received for these topics have been increasing, decreasing or have been the same from the previous month respectively. - Summary of updates from user support - General user support - Farsi-speaking user support - Russian-speaking user support - Frontdesk (email user support channel) - Telegram, WhatsApp and Signal user support channels - Highlights from the Tor Forum - Highlights from Google Play Store # Summary of updates from user support ## General user support * 486 tickets in total (↓110 as compared to February) * 319 tickets on Email * 118 tickets on Telegram * 24 tickets on Signal * 25 tickets on WhatsApp * With Tor Browser 15.0.7 release, a potential fix was shipped for the long-time persisting issue about the [Tor daemon failing in the background][] when using Tor Browser for Android. After a month of reviewing Google Play Store reviews and comments and monitoring our user support channels, I am happy to report the issue seems to have been fixed \o/. * With Tor VPN beta now available to download from F-Droid App Store, we updated the documentation with instructions to [download and install][], update and uninstall the app from F-Droid. * Tor Browser has dropped support for [legacy operating systems]. We updated the documentation to reflect this update. [Tor daemon failing in the background]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/42714 [download and install]: https://support.torproject.org/tor-vpn/getting-started/download-and-install/ [legacy operating system]: https://support.torproject.org/tor-browser/security/legacy-os/ ## Farsi-speaking user support * 33 tickets in total (↓75 as compared to February) * 7 tickets on Email * 26 tickets on Telegram * In March, users in Iran have been experiencing a near-total shutdown. As per reports, only a handful number of whitelisted services remain accessible and most common censorship circumvention tools are no longer working reliably. For users who managed to reach out to us on our support channels, we have been suggesting [dnstt][] (DNS tunneling) with Tor. Information about it is being shared through the [@GetDnsttBot on Telegram][], along with instructions on how to use dnstt with Orbot and Tor Browser. * As per a [survey] conducted via Telegram in Farsi for internet users in Iran, with about 13,400 responses, 12% of the respondents mentioned they were able to access the internet using dnstt. [dnstt]: https://dnstt.network/ [@GetdnsttBot on Telegram]: https://t.me/getdnsttbot [survey]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/censorship-analysis/-/issu... ## Russian-speaking user support * 709 tickets in total (↓179 as compared to February) * 176 tickets on Email (↑19) * 518 tickets on Telegram (↓207) * 7 tickets on WhatsApp (↑1) * 8 tickets on Signal (↑8) * As a result of Russia blocking Telegram since the mid of March, the number of tickets we received over our user support channel on Telegram has dropped significantly. In the meantime, as a reminder for our users that we have [support channels][] reachable over email and other mediums, we posted updates reflecting that on our Telegram channels [in English][] as well as [in Russian][] respectively. We are already noticing a surge in the number tickets over email from Russian-speaking users. [support channels]: https://support.torproject.org/ru/get-in-touch/user-support/ [in English]: https://t.me/torproject/53 [in Russian]: https://t.me/torproject/55 # Frontdesk (email user support channel) * 485(-) RT tickets created * 502(↓) RT tickets resolved Tickets by topics and numbers: 1. 176(↑) tickets: circumventing censorship in Russian speaking countries. 2. 170(↓) tickets: instructions to circumvent censorship for Chinese speaking users. 3. 61(↓) tickets: help with troubleshooting existing Tor Browser install on Desktop (Windows, macOS and Linux). 4. 17(↑) tickets: help with troubleshooting Tor VPN beta. 5. 13() tickets: circumventing censorship with Tor in Farsi. 6. 9(↓) tickets: reports of fake apps on iOS AppStore masquerading as official Tor Browser 7. 5(↑) tickets: questions about which Tor app to install on iOS (i.e. Onion Browser or Orbot). 8. 5(↓) tickets: report of websites blocking Tor connections or not performing well in Tor Browser. 9. 5(↑) tickets: help with using bridges with Tor VPN Beta. 10. 4(↑) tickets: question about contributing to Tor. 11. 4(↑) tickets: help with using bridges with Tails. 12. 2(↑) tickets: can't use Tor VPN when Private DNS is configured on Android's Network settings. 13. 2(↓) tickets: help with troubleshooting Tor Browser for Android. 14. 2(↑) tickets: Accessibility issues and [Dark Mode][] in Tor Browser. 15. 2(↓) tickets: instructions on how to get Tor Browser binaries from GetTor. 16. 2(↓) tickets: help with setting up Snowflake proxy. 17. 2(-) tickets: instructions to download Tor Browser 13.5 legacy for legacy operating systems. 18. 1(↓) ticket: reports of anti-virus software blocking Tor Browser from running on Windows. 19. 1(↓) ticket: unable to save passwords on Tor Browser Desktop. 20. 1(↑) ticket: help with installing Tor VPN beta. 21. 1(↑) ticket: report of Tor VPN [bug#469][] 22. 1(↑) ticket: report of an issue with [configuring the 'exit' location][] on Tor VPN. 23. 1(↑) ticket: how to change the search engine from Tor Browser's default DuckDuckGo. 24. 1(↑) ticket: question about installing Tor Browser on a Chromebook. 25. 1(↑) ticket: [Web Authentication][] (WebAuthn) support is disabled in Tor Browser. 26. 1(↑) ticket: [German translation][] suggestion. 27. 1(↑) ticket: [Advisory][] for Tor Relay operators. 28. 1(↑) ticket: Tor Browser for Android [displays a notification] even after the browser session is closed. [Dark Mode]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/40337 [bug#469]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/vpn/-/issues/469 [configuring the 'exit' location]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/vpn/-/issues/428 [Web Authentication]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/26614 [German translation]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/community/l10n/-/issues/40194 [Advisory]: https://lists.torproject.org/mailman3/hyperkitty/list/tor-relays@lists.torpr... [displays a notification]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/43695 # Telegram, WhatsApp and Signal user support channels * 727(↓) tickets resolved Breakdown: * 662(↓) tickets on Telegram * 33(↑) tickets on Signal * 32(-) tickets on WhatsApp Tickets by topics and numbers: 1. 518(↓) tickets: circumventing censorship in Russian speaking countries. 2. 36(↓) tickets: help with using bridges with Tor VPN Beta. 3. 36(↑) tickets: help with troubleshooting existing Tor Browser install on Desktop (Windows, macOS and Linux). 4. 35(↑) tickets: instructions to circumvent censorship for Chinese speaking users. 5. 26(↓) tickets: circumventing censorship with Tor in Farsi. 6. 23(↓) tickets: instructions to fetch bridges from Bridge distributors on Telegram or Email and use them with Tor Browser and Tor VPN beta. 7. 22(↑) tickets: questions about which Tor app to install on iOS (i.e. Onion Browser or Orbot). 8. 17(↑) tickets: help with troubleshooting Tor VPN beta. 9. 12(↑) tickets: instructions on how to get Tor Browser binaries from GetTor. 10. 11(↓) tickets: helping users on iOS, using Onion Browser or Orbot, to use censorship circumvention methods. 11. 7(-) tickets: help with troubleshooting existing Tor Browser install on Android. 12. 4(↑) tickets: questions about onion services and how to access them. 13. 4(↑) tickets: help with using bridges with Tails. 14. 4(↑) tickets: reports of [GetTor distributor][] on Telegram not working. (Issue is resolved). 15. 2(↑) tickets: report of websites blocking Tor connections or not performing well in Tor Browser. 16. 2(↓) tickets: instructions to use WebTunnel bridges with Tor Browser. 17. 1(↓) ticket: help with installing Tor Browser on Desktop on Linux. 18. 1(↓) ticket: GetBridgesBot on Telegram freezes and stops sending bridges and users have to clear chat history. 19. 1(↓) ticket: instructions to download Tor Browser 13.5 legacy for legacy operating systems. 20. 1(↓) ticket: help with configuring bridges to use with little-t tor (the network daemon). 21. 1(↑) ticket: Misconfigured [WebTunnel bridges] exposed to the public relay extra-infos docs. 22. 1(↑) ticket: question about the letterboxing feature in Tor Browser. [GetTor distributor]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/gettor-project/OnionSprout... [WebTunnel bridges]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/anti-censorship/team/-/issues/179 # Highlights from the Tor Forum * Issue with [bookmarks and saved passwords][] on Tor Browser for macOS. * [Tor Browser legacy][] has dropped support for legacy operating systems. [bookmarks and saved passwords]: https://forum.torproject.org/t/i-cant-get-the-bookmarks-and-passwords/21352 [Tor Browser legacy]: https://forum.torproject.org/t/new-release-tor-browser-13-5-29/21283/2 # Highlights from Google Play Store ## Tor Browser for Android * Tor Browser for Android (TBA) had a Google Play rating of 4.426(↑0.02) stars in March, which is higher as compared to in February. The surge in ratings is very likely due to the fix for the 'Tor daemon failing in the background' on [Android bug], that shipped with Tor Browser 15.0.7. * Tor Browser for Android (TBA) got 581(↓79) new reviews. The total count of reviews for the app stands at 68,396. * For Tor Browser, the most common issue mentioned on reviews was the censorship against Tor in the countries like Russia, China, Iran. [Android bug]: https://gitlab.torproject.org/tpo/applications/tor-browser/-/issues/42714 ## Tor Browser for Android Alpha * Tor Browser for Android Alpha app had a rating of 4.131(-) in March which is the same as compared to February. * In March, Tor Browser for Android Alpha got 21(↑6) new reviews. The total count of reviews for the app stands at 8,777. ## Tor VPN Beta * Tor VPN beta number of unique daily users is around 77,000 at the end of March. * The top 5 countries by the number of installations being (in descending order): Russia, Iran, India, the United States, and Turkmenistan. Thanks! -- ebanam