 | |
| Formation | 2017 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Alp Toker |
| Type | Social business |
| Headquarters | London, United Kingdom |
| Methods | Technology journalism |
| Website | netblocks |
NetBlocks is a watchdog organization that monitors cybersecurity and the governance of the Internet. [1] [2] The service was launched in 2017 to monitor Internet freedom. [3]
NetBlocks publishes original reporting on Internet governance and sustainable energy, providing tools to the public to observe possible Internet restrictions and to estimate the economic consequences of network disruptions. [4] [5] NetBlocks has established a high level of trust in communities around the world, facilitating the spread of information during emergencies and Internet censorship events, according to peer-reviewed research published in the scientific journal Nature . [6]
On 25 November 2017, NetBlocks and the Digital Rights Foundation provided information about the nationwide censorship of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social media services by the Pakistani government following the Tehreek-e-Labaik protests. [7] [8] [9]
During the 2018–2019 Sudanese protests, NetBlocks stated that the Sudanese government maintains "an extensive Internet censorship regime" following the censorship of social media websites in the country. [10] Following the 2019 Gabonese coup d'état attempt, NetBlocks monitored censorship in the country. [11] The cost of the three-day Internet shutdown following the Zimbabwean fuel protests was also calculated to cost Zimbabwe an estimated $17 million. [12]
The block of Wikipedia in Venezuela and other censorship incidents during the Venezuelan presidential crisis were also monitored by NetBlocks, with several international media outlets covering the situation with NetBlocks' work. [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18]
In July 2020, as the Somalian Parliament passed a motion of no confidence in Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire, NetBlocks reported that Internet access had been disrupted impeding media coverage of political and public reactions to events on the ground, presenting evidence contradicting network operator Hormuud Telecom's claim that the outage was due to "windy conditions." [19] [20]
From February 2022, NetBlocks set up a reporting initiative providing extensive coverage on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, documenting Russian efforts to disable communications at nuclear sites and in conflict zones. [21] [22] [23]
Internet censorship is the legal control or suppression of what can be accessed, published, or viewed on the Internet. Censorship is most often applied to specific internet domains but exceptionally may extend to all Internet resources located outside the jurisdiction of the censoring state. Internet censorship may also put restrictions on what information can be made internet accessible. Organizations providing internet access – such as schools and libraries – may choose to preclude access to material that they consider undesirable, offensive, age-inappropriate or even illegal, and regard this as ethical behaviour rather than censorship. Individuals and organizations may engage in self-censorship of material they publish, for moral, religious, or business reasons, to conform to societal norms, political views, due to intimidation, or out of fear of legal or other consequences.
Iran is notable for the degree of internet censorship by its government. Iran was the second place in the world for internet censorship in 2022 after repeatedly shutting off the internet in parts of country and blocking access to social media platforms to curb protests sparking from of Mahsa Amini’s death, a new poll has showed. The country now targets Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) in order to completely cut off the people from access to outside media. Several popular social media platforms and instant messaging applications are blocked by the Iranian government and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), including YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Telegram, Snapchat, Reddit, Medium, Instagram, and Threads. Some streaming services, including Netflix and Hulu, are also blocked by the government. Websites relating to health, science, sports, news, pornography, and shopping are also routinely blocked.
The Internet is accessible to the majority of the population in Egypt, whether via smartphones, internet cafes, or home connections. Broadband Internet access via VDSL is widely available. Under the rule of Hosni Mubarak, Internet censorship and surveillance were severe, culminating in a total shutdown of the Internet in Egypt during the 2011 Revolution. Although Internet access was restored following Mubarak's order, government censorship and surveillance have increased since the 2013 coup d'état, leading the NGO Freedom House to downgrade Egypt's Internet freedom from "partly free" in 2011 to "not free" in 2015, which it has retained in subsequent reports including the most recent in 2021. The el-Sisi regime has ramped up online censorship in Egypt. The regime heavily censors online news websites, which has prompted the closure of many independent news outlets in Egypt.
The American video-sharing platform YouTube is the second-most popular website as of August 2019, according to Alexa Internet. According to the company's press page, YouTube has more than one billion users, and each day, those users watch more than one billion hours of video. Censorship of it has occurred and continues to occur to varying degrees in most countries throughout the world.
Use of the Internet in Venezuela has greatly expanded, but is mostly concentrated among younger, educated city residents, and centered on the capital, Caracas. According to several experts, the lack of quality Internet in Venezuela, which includes the slowest speed in Latin America and one of the slowest Internet speeds in the world, is due to the poor infrastructure of the country.
Censorship in Venezuela refers to all actions which can be considered as suppression in speech in the country. Reporters Without Borders ranked Venezuela 159th out of 180 countries in its World Press Freedom Index 2023 and classified Venezuela's freedom of information in the "very difficult situation" level.
Facebook is a social networking service that has been gradually replacing traditional media channels since 2010. Facebook has limited moderation of the content posted to its site. Because the site indiscriminately displays material publicly posted by users, Facebook can, in effect, threaten oppressive governments. Facebook can simultaneously propagate fake news, hate speech, and misinformation, thereby undermining the credibility of online platforms and social media.
Internet censorship in Syria is extensive; with numerous websites and online platforms being banned for political reasons. Internet usage is authorized only through state-run servers and people accessing through other means are arrested. Filtering and blocking was found to be pervasive in the political and Internet tools areas, and selective in the social and conflict/security areas by the OpenNet Initiative in August 2009.
Censorship of X, formerly and commonly called Twitter, refers to Internet censorship by governments that block access to X. X censorship also includes governmental notice and take down requests to X, which X enforces in accordance with its Terms of Service when a government or authority submits a valid removal request to X indicating that specific content is illegal in their jurisdiction.
An Internet outage or Internet blackout or Internet shutdown is the complete or partial failure of the internet services. It can occur due to censorship, cyberattacks, disasters, police or security services actions or errors.
In Russia, internet censorship is enforced on the basis of several laws and through several mechanisms. Since 2012, Russia maintains a centralized internet blacklist maintained by the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor).
La Patilla is a Venezuelan news website that was founded by Alberto Federico Ravell, co-founder and former CEO of Globovisión, in 2010. In 2014, El Nuevo Herald stated La Patilla had hundreds of thousands of visitors per daily. Beginning in early 2018, the website has been censored in Venezuela by the Nicolás Maduro government.
On 12 January 2019, the main telecommunications provider in Venezuela, CANTV, issued a block against the online encyclopedia, Wikipedia. All of CANTV's 1.5 million users were affected by the decision. The block was lifted on 18 January 2019, following widespread criticism against the state-owned company, claiming it was in response to the Venezuelan presidential crisis.
The 2019 Venezuelan protests were a collection of protests that were organized, since 11 January, as a coordinated effort to remove Nicolás Maduro from the presidency. Demonstrations began following Maduro's controversial second inauguration, developing into a presidential crisis between Maduro and National Assembly president Juan Guaidó. The protests also included counter-demonstrations organized by those who support Maduro.
Nationwide recurring electrical blackouts in Venezuela began in March 2019. Experts and state-run Corpoelec sources attribute the electricity shortages to lack of maintenance and to a lack of technical expertise in the country resulting from a brain drain; Nicolás Maduro's administration attributes them to sabotage. Since March, various nationwide blackouts occurred in the country.
There has been censorship and media control during Venezuelan presidential crisis between 2019 and January 2023.
VPItv is a Venezuelan online television channel founded by Fabiola Colmenares and Leonardo Trechi. The channel is based in Caracas, Venezuela and Miami, Florida, United States.
This list of Internet censorship and surveillance in the Americas provides information on the types and levels of Internet censorship and surveillance that is occurring in countries in the Americas.
The Open Observatory of Network Interference (OONI) is a project that monitors internet censorship globally. It relies on volunteers to run software that detects blocking and reports the findings to the organization. As of June 2023, OONI has analyzed 1,468.4 million network connections in 241 countries.
The 2019 Internet blackout in Iran was a week-long total shutdown of the Internet. It was ordered by the Supreme National Security Council and imposed by the Ministry of ICT. The blackout was one of the Iranian government's efforts to suppress the 2019–2020 protests. During the blackout, Iranian citizens could only access the National Information Network. Mohammad-Javad Jahromi was sanctioned by the United States Department of the Treasury because of his role in Internet censorship in Iran.