Users of South Korean messenger KakaoTalk and Turkish messenger BiP have been reporting service disruptions for a second day, according to the Telegram channel Ostorozhno, Moskva. Since July 28, messages on BiP have been sent with delays and media files have loaded slowly, the channel's sources said. KakaoTalk, according to users, does not load at all. Both messengers work normally when a VPN is enabled.
Downdetector recorded a 'moderate' number of complaints about BiP — just over 150 in 24 hours. Most reports came from the Kirov, Leningrad, and Moscow regions. Users said they could not load media, send or receive messages, and some said the app would not open. Only two complaints about KakaoTalk were submitted to Downdetector in the same period, though users in comments also reported problems.
The cause of the outages is unclear. Russia's communications watchdog, Roskomnadzor, has not announced a block on either messenger.
KakaoTalk and BiP began gaining users in Russia after Telegram was throttled and effectively blocked in early 2026. According to data from MTS AdTech, in the second quarter of 2026 the audience of the South Korean messenger grew by 80%, and BiP by 120%. The total audience of foreign messengers not blocked in Russia increased by 26% over the same period. BiP ranked first in growth, KakaoTalk second.