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Does WhatsApp work in Dubai? Well, not entirely. You can send and receive WhatsApp messages, but you cant make video and voice calls. Considering that WhatsApp is the worlds most popular messaging app, the WhatsApp ban in Dubai can be frustrating. Even worse, theres no clear indication from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) government whether the ban will be lifted.

Fortunately, virtual private networks (VPNs) are excellent workarounds, as they allow you to use the internet anonymously. In this guide, well show you the best VPNs to unblock WhatsApp calling in Dubai. If you want a quick answer; we recommend ExpressVPN.

You can send WhatsApp text messages in Dubai, but you cant make video or voice calls.

Because WhatsApp is blocked, your voice and video calls wont go through; however, you can send and receive texts.

WhatsApps end-to-end encryption features prevent the UAE government from monitoring calls. In addition, the government wants to promote its own telecommunications industry.

VoIP apps BOTIM, CMe and ToTok work in Dubai.

For years, the UAEs Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) has banned WhatsApp calls. While authorities have not officially explained the reasons behind the restriction, its obvious that WhatsApps end-to-end encryption is a stumbling block to the governments desire to monitor internet calls.

Internet users have been calling for the UAE government to unban WhatsApp. Sadly, the bright spots have been few and far between. For instance, authorities temporarily lifted the ban during Expo 2020, Dubais worlds fair, only to shut down the app afterwards.

In 2019, during an interview with CNBC, the director of UAEs National Electronic Security Authority hinted that the ban might soon be lifted, pointing to increased collaboration with WhatsApp. However, three years on, WhatsApp is still banned.

As mentioned earlier, the UAE government has banned WhatsApp calling and other Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calls because of privacy and national security reasons. However, thats just the tip of the iceberg.

At the heart of these bans is a desire to control the telecommunications sector in the country and rake in more profits. Thats why UAE authorities drive people to use the homegrown BOTIM app.

A VPN can unblock WhatsApp calling because it can spoof your location by routing your traffic through a server in another country. That way, you can bypass geoblocks and make calls anonymously.

Unblocking WhatsApp in Dubai is not difficult. All you need to do is to choose a good VPN, install it and connect to a nearby server. Heres an example.

Open your app store (Google Play Store or Apple Store) and download a VPN. For this example, well use ExpressVPN on Android. Click the install tab and it should download and install on your phone in a few minutes.

Open the VPN app and connect to a VPN server. Look for a server in a country where WhatsApp is not banned and connect to one nearest to you, because a nearby server will give you faster connection speeds.

Now, you can open your WhatsApp and start making calls.

When choosing a VPN to unblock WhatsApp, look for ones that offer fast speeds, server locations near the UAE and solid security features. Here are our top picks.

ExpressVPN is the best VPN for unbanning WhatsApp.

ExpressVPN is the best VPN for unblocking WhatsApp in Dubai, mainly because its lightning-fast. For VPNs, the closer the server, the faster your browsing speed. Of its over 3,000 servers in 94 countries, ExpressVPN has a few in countries close to Dubai, including Pakistan, Israel, Egypt and India.

Further, ExpressVPN comes with military-grade AES-256 encryption, DNS leak protection and obfuscated servers, which ensure that the UAE government cant detect and monitor your traffic. ExpressVPNs main drawback is that its pricey, but theres a 30-day money-back guarantee to test it out. If youre looking for a cheaper option, consider NordVPN or Windscribe.

NordVPN can help you bypass Dubais WhatsApp ban.

With 5,200 servers in 60 countries, NordVPN is also a good choice for using WhatsApp in Dubai. It has servers in nearby countries such as Turkey, Israel and India. In addition, NordVPNs obfuscated servers make it an excellent choice if you want fast, anonymous browsing. Because such servers conceal the fact that youre using a VPN, theyre perfect for heavily censored areas like Dubai.

Whats more, NordVPN offers features including double VPN and onion over VPN that provide extra layers of security. However, we wouldnt really recommend it to new VPN users, since all those advanced features can be confusing to use. Thankfully, NordVPN is a bit more affordable than ExpressVPN if you subscribe to one of its long-term plans.

Windscribe is a free VPN for unblocking WhatsApp in Dubai.

Windscribe also has servers in countries close to the UAE, including Israel and Turkey. However, Windscribe makes this list because of its encapsulated protocols, named Stealth and WStunnel. While using them can slow down your internet connection, theyre helpful because they hide the fact that youre using a VPN from prying government servers.

Its worth noting that Windscribes claim to fame is that it has one of the most generous free plans. Its one of the few free VPNs that we wholeheartedly recommend, so if youre on a tight budget, its worth a try.

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If you want to use WhatsApp in Dubai, youll need a VPN, because WhatsApp calls are banned there. For our money, ExpressVPN is the best, thanks to its extensive server network and reliability. However, you can also use cheaper alternatives like NordVPN and Windscribe.

Have you ever tried getting past the WhatsApp ban in Dubai? Which VPN worked best? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below, and as always, thanks for reading!

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Original post:
WhatsApp Ban in Dubai [What You Need to Know in 2022] - Cloudwards