Can My Desi.Net Be Accessed Outside India And Pakistan?

For the geographically restricted sites (i.e. ‘desi.net’), for the most part, one can access these sites from outside of India and Pakistan although as mentioned before, certain features and functionalities on these sites may not work. To determine the level of accessibility of a site, I typically test the site first on different browsers and devices. Next, I use online status checker or web-based proxy to determine if the site is being blocked. If blocked, I test if the site can be accessed by using a reputable VPN or Smart DNS with appropriate exit node (i.e. IP address located in the country where the site expects its users to be from). Finally, I perform a traceroute and DNS lookups to determine whether the site is even reachable but being filtered in transit.

Also, be aware that many apps and services these days restrict payment services to users from certain regions. So even if a website is available in your country, services such as online payment systems may not be. I find that Smart DNS generally provides better performance for streaming purposes than full VPNs, but VPNs certainly provide better protection of user data. When a site is censored by a government or ISP, it’s usually best to exercise caution and check if use of a VPN is even allowed in that region. In the meantime, I’ve made a list of various mirror sites, RSS feeds and even older copies of restricted websites. When traveling abroad, I generally prefer to use a fast and reliable VPN to remain connected without any problems. Not perfect, but it works for me.

I have browsed enough niche sites in the desiology to realize that there are some caveats in place that I have come to realize. First, the default behavior of a plain public website hosted on a typical server or behind a typical content delivery network (CDN) is to be globally reachable – thus most sites like desi.net will be accessible from outside of India and Pakistan without any special work on the part of the site owner. The exception would be if the site owner were to explicitly block access to certain IP ranges (e.g. those belonging to countries he doesn’t like) or use other geo-restrictions.

In most cases, a simple test would reveal whether the site in question is down for everyone or not. Check the website from different browsers on different computers. Also, use websites like isitdownordo Not Down For Everyone To See to verify if the website is indeed down for everyone or not. Often, sites like these can give you a good idea if the problem is on your end or if the website is down for everyone. If you are unable to access a website and all your colleagues are accessing it fine from within India, it’s most likely a case of geo-blocking. Using a VPN or a Smart DNS service that has servers based in India or Pakistan would help you access the website as if you were in that country. However, keep in mind that performance may vary from one VPN to another and some of them may slow down your browsing experience quite a bit. Sites with a lot of streaming or interactive elements will suffer the most.

One more thing. Be sure to respect the terms of service of a given website as well as the laws of a given country. Some sites may block access from abroad for reasons related to licensing. Try to find a way to access a given site or service that is sanctioned by the site administrators. Look for mirror sites or RSS feeds as appropriate. A simple e-mail to the admin of a given site asking about international access is usually sufficient to get you the information you need. As a frequent traveler I rely on a few trusted VPN services as well as a number of Smart DNS services that have exit points in India and Pakistan. Performance varies but I find that a good VPN or Smart DNS service can save a lot of headaches while providing excellent browsing experience.

I was recently locked out of one of my favorite regional forums while on the road for an extended period. So I learned this the hard way: availability of sites such as “desi.net” can sometimes be restricted based on geography. It’s possible that the site uses location-based rules to control access. In some cases, your bank, app store, or payment provider may also restrict access to your accounts or services based on the country where you opened them. This can affect not only logins but also purchases and app downloads from stores such as the Apple App Store or Android Market. Even when a site is available, it’s possible that comments, downloads, or video streams may be restricted to IP addresses based within a given location and so appear to be unavailable from abroad even though full functionality is available on the site’s main pages.

For quick fixes to reach your favorite content, clear your browser’s cookies (try incognito mode first), and then see if a good Smart DNS service will give you better speeds for your streaming needs than a VPN (which would reroute all your traffic instead of only location lookups for you). Also note that mobile apps for various services can be restricted from download in app stores based on regions. Therefore, try signing up for an account from within that region and then see if you can download the app (or even better, sideload it — just be sure that you are allowed to do so for that particular service and that you comply with all the associated terms and conditions). For signup issues, sites can require verification of a phone number locally issued, and even payment methods (e.g. credit cards) may need to be issued from within a particular region. In such cases, your virtual credit card that you can issue to yourself online from within a region that’s appropriate for the service in question can sometimes be of help. Be sure to verify terms and conditions first.

My test cases for usability outside of India and Pakistan have confirmed that, although many users can access the site in question, their ability to use the site effectively may vary. Basic functionality tests form the bulk of my traveling troubleshooting work, with occasional up-grading to test the use of VPNs and/or Smart DNS where considered safe and legal to do so.