Controversial social media app Parler has come back, although partially, with a Russian-owned tech company. Currently, it’s online!
According to Reuters, the Parler app, wholly removed from the internet, has returned online. With the help of a Russian tech company, it’s now reachable upon searching.
However, now the internet protocol its using is DDos-Guard, which is controlled by two Russian men. It also allows the website protection from denial of service attacks.
The Parler app controversy
The social media app recently vanished from the internet after Amazon’s AWS division pulled its support from the platform. It happened in the wake of the US Capitol riots. Reports found out that many of the far-right users who were on Parler used violent threats in their posts on the application.
Following the inevitable pressure, many vendors removed it from their stores, including Apple and Google. Then Amazon’s hosting service also detached itself from the portal because Parler wasn’t able to moderate the users’ harmful content.
The unfortunate event of the US Capitol insurrection took place on January sixth, resulting in a lot of removal of user profiles. Many other social media networks banned thousands of accounts due to their online activities. They were found to be involved in the mob violence while also being associated with President Donald Trump.
Is social media getting restricted?
The last six to eight months have been very unexpected when it comes to people’s online reactions and social media platforms themselves.
Firstly, Twitter and Facebook faced questions of not protecting users from harmful and hateful posts and tweets. They failed to regulate abusive conduct and language. After that, the companies initiated steps in the form of blocking suspicious profiles. Not just that, they also banned Donald Trump himself during the time of the US Presidential election in 2020.
Then there were reactions against this action as well, like many raised objections citing freedom of expression. But the events of the US Capitol riots aggravated the situation onto another level in January. Social networks took notice of this and simultaneously banned a lot of accounts. It may appear as if the internet is getting restricted, but that’s not the case.
What happened with Parler and similar apps is a result of constant chaos and violent activities happening online. Supporters of such harmful content keep posting a lot of things that might influence real-life scenarios. And that’s what happened recently in the case of American riots. And thus, there’s a need for keeping a check and control on those user profiles, which keep spreading several agendas, among others, across multiple social media services.
Image courtesy of Bloomberg Markets and Finance/YouTube Screenshot