Where is Alexandra Elbakyan now?

Alexandra Elbakyan, creator of Sci-Hub, remains in hiding due to copyright lawsuits from major publishers, living a nomadic life while continuing her work, reportedly pursuing further education in history of science and linguistics, and focusing on religious topics, though her exact current location is undisclosed, with sources indicating she's been in Russia and elsewhere, constantly moving to avoid extradition.

Is Alexandra Elbakyan in hiding?

Following a lawsuit, Elbakyan remained in hiding due to the risk of extradition. There were also lawsuits against Sci-Hub and Elbakyan from other publishers and in other countries.

How do I contact Alexandra Elbakyan?

Alexandra Elbakyan's Email Addresses

Email Alexandra Elbakyan at [email protected] and [email protected].

Who owns Sci-Hub?

Sci-Hub was founded in Kazakhstan by Alexandra Elbakyan in 2011, in response to the rising costs of research papers behind paywalls. The site is extensively used worldwide.

Who did Sci-Hub?

Alexandra Elbakyan founded Sci-Hub to thwart journal paywalls. Beyond being the founder of Sci-Hub, the world's largest pirate site for academic papers, and risking arrest as a result, Alexandra Elbakyan is a typical science graduate student: idealistic, hard-working, and relatively poor.

Sci-Hub Founder Alexandra Elbakyan Takes On The Publishing Lobby To Make Science Free For All

Is Sci-Hub still working?

Yes, Sci-Hub is generally still working, but its functionality varies, with some users noting issues accessing papers published after 2022 and legal blocks making it inaccessible in some regions, though mirror sites and alternatives (like Sci-Net or Telegram bots) often provide access. The platform faces ongoing legal challenges from publishers, leading to domain changes and temporary suspensions of new uploads, but it remains a widely used tool for accessing research. 

Why is Sci-Hub illegal?

Sci-Hub provides illegal access to published content collected through unethical practices, and the site puts users at risk of phishing, hacking, and identity theft.

What are the criticisms of Sci-Hub?

Critics of Sci-Hub mention issues like copyright infringement and potential risks to university security. However, many people support Sci-Hub because it allows users around the world to access valuable academic research for free, making it more convenient and easier to use.

What's better than Sci-Hub?

While Sci-Hub remains a popular choice, these five alternatives offer diverse, ethical, and effective ways to obtain research papers:

• Library Genesis (LibGen): Best for comprehensive academic resources.
• Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ): Ideal for peer-reviewed open-access journals.

Who is Elsevier owned by?

Elsevier is part of the RELX Group, known until 2015 as Reed Elsevier, a publicly traded company. According to RELX reports, in 2022 Elsevier published more than 600,000 articles annually in over 2,800 journals.

Does Sundar Pichai respond to emails?

9 years ago, as a student at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, I emailed the CEO of Google, Sundar Pichai. He replied to my cold email - after a week. As one of the most successful world leaders, his time is more precious than mine.

Is it safe to use Sci-Hub?

Sci-Hub is a website that provides access to research articles and books, without copyright clearance from either authors or publishers. It is not considered an open-access platform, nor recommended for use. Use of Sci-Hub is a breach of the Western Sydney University's Acceptable Use of Digital Services Policy.

How to enter Sci-Hub?

To access Sci-Hub, find a paper's DOI or URL on a site like Google Scholar (like 10.1002/anie.202301234), then go to a working Sci-Hub mirror (e.g., sci-hub.st or search "SciHub mirrors"). Paste the DOI or URL into the search bar and click "Open" to get the full article, often as a PDF, bypassing paywalls. 

Is CrazyRussianHacker actually Russian?

Taras Vladimirovich Kulakov (born March 11, 1987), better known as CrazyRussianHacker, is a self described Russian-American Ukrainian-born YouTuber of mixed Russian and Ukrainian descent.

What is Russia's blacklist?

Since 2008, Russia has maintained a centralized internet blacklist (known as the "single register") administered by the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor). The list is used for the censorship of individual URLs, domain names, and IP addresses.

Is Sci-Hub a search engine?

What is Sci-Hub? Sci-Hub is a search engine that works in concert with a repository called Library Genesis (LibGen) to give researchers access to a cache of articles taken illegally from scientific journals.

Why is the Sci-Hub not working in 2025?

News broke in August 2025 that the Delhi High Court had ordered the banning of websites like Sci-Hub and Libgen. Many Indian academics were incensed, suggesting it would be the death of research in India and saw the ban as an assault on free and equal access to knowledge.

Can we use Sci-Hub in the USA?

Sci-Hub is an online search engine with millions of scholarly articles available free for download. Its activity, however, is illegal, because it infringes the copyright of the publishers.

What are the ethics of using Sci-Hub?

Ethical and Legal Issues: Sci-Hub raises serious ethical concerns about copyright infringement and the legitimacy of accessing pirated content. Most publishers argue that there are authorized channels to access literature and that Sci-Hub constitutes theft.

What is the most trusted science website?

For reliable science information, check reputable journals like Science (AAAS) and Nature, science news outlets like Science News, BBC Science Focus, National Geographic, and Ars Technica, and government/academic sites such as Science.gov, PubMed, and university pages (like UC Berkeley's Understanding Science) for in-depth, expert-vetted content, with Google Scholar for accessing research papers directly. 

Who runs Sci-Hub?

We have thus conversed with Alexandra Elbakyan, the founder of Sci-Hub, on what makes our path converge with that of science on this platform which has today become crucial to free access to knowledge.

What is going on with Sci-Hub?

Sci-Hub's currently repository is frozen by design. Due to intense and ongoing legal battles and injunctions, particularly in jurisdictions like India, Sci-Hub has ceased uploading new articles. Its database, once a living library, is now a static archive.

Where can I see research papers for free?

OpenDOAR. OpenDOAR, or the Directory of Open Access Repositories, is a comprehensive resource for finding free OA journals and articles. Using Google Custom Search, OpenDOAR combs through OA repositories around the world and returns relevant research in all disciplines.

Is downloading ebooks illegal?

Downloading an ebook from an unauthorized source is a violation of copyright law, even if you're not selling or sharing it yourself. The act of downloading itself constitutes a form of copying, which is protected by copyright. This is why it's so important to be careful about where you get your ebooks from.

What kind of articles are on Sci-Hub?

We refer to these texts as “articles”, although Sci-Hub encompasses a range of text types, including book chapters, conference papers, and journal front matter.