"Silicon Valley Is Nervously Watching From The Sidelines"

• 6.08.2026, 15:19

A1's internet service works "much like a fax machine."

A Minsk resident, pika_pikados, posed some uncomfortable questions to the mobile carrier.

“A1, have you really decided to run your business like a gypsy woman at the train station?” he writes. “If so, you could just be honest and say: ‘We regularly sign people up for services they didn’t ask for. If that drives you crazy, leave.’” At least that would be free of hypocrisy.

I had a bundle: unlimited mobile service, home internet, and TV. TV, which I don’t need at all—especially since your app manages to work in such a way that the TV just reboots after a few minutes.

Finally, I had the option to keep only mobile service and home internet. Well, okay. I even swallowed the fact that you decided to charge me a few more rubles for disconnecting a service I didn’t need.

But then the A1 “signature style” kicks in. Without a single notification, they activated “Safe Internet” for me. Seriously? Is it normal at your company to first push something on someone and then see if they notice or not?

And the funniest part is that this “super protection” can actually tell whether a website is open via HTTPS or HTTP. That’s it. I’m giving them a standing ovation. Now that’s technology. Silicon Valley is already nervously smoking on the sidelines.

And this isn’t even the first “blunder.” I’ve already come to terms with the fact that mobile internet on Rafieva works about as well as a fax machine in 2026. If I see a speed of 1 Mbit/s, I think, “Wow, today’s a holiday.”

But, A1, maybe you could at least stop silently signing people up for all kinds of nonsense? Or just be honest and say, “Yes, this is how we operate.” Then there won’t be any questions. There’ll just be a request to switch to another carrier.”