UPDATED:July 18, 2024

Internet shutdown tracker

Undemocratic governments can disrupt their countries’ network connection and social media access as a means to silence the public in times of political unrest. The Internet Shutdown Tracker unmasks the countries guilty of taking these measures according to internet watchdog NetBlocks and other media and NGO reports. The study includes cases that occurred from 2015 onwards.

In partnership with

5,923,379,137

Total users deprived of internet access to date

Total countries that have disrupted access to date

Where has the internet been restricted?

Regional statistics

We have sorted internet shutdowns (including both network connection disruptions and social media/messaging app disruptions) by region for easier viewing.

Africa

Asia

Europe

North America

South America

Oceania

Africa is the second most intensive region by internet shutdowns. 8 out of 10 Africans have been hit by internet shutdowns since 2015.

Cases of disruptions since 2015: 122

Out of which due to:

Protests

Elections

Other political turmoil

Internet law

No. of countries

% of the continent

No evidence

33.3%

Any type of disruption in the past

66.7%

Currently restricting social media/messaging apps

11.1%

Social media/messaging apps disrupted in the past

46.3%

Network connection disrupted in the past

51.9%

Affected people

1,168,354,387

81.1%

Find a country profile

Search for a country to find out if it has faced internet shutdowns

Regional ranking by disruptions: 13th in Asia

Cases of disruptions since 2015: 4

Out of which due to:

Protests

N/A

Elections

Other political turmoil

N/A

Internet law

Currently restricting social media platforms

Facebook

2009, July

X (formerly Twitter)

2009, July

Youtube

2009, July

Instagram

2016, September

2016, July

2017, September

Insights

More than 2/3 of all Asian countries have had limited access to the internet in the past for reasons ranging from total Western social media shutdowns to blocking YouTube because of leaked sexual footage involving local politicians.

African countries block access to social media the most (34 countries), especially amid political turmoil or elections. 1/3 of African countries have restricted access to internet services because of elections.

While South America doesn’t have many recorded cases of internet restrictions, Venezuela has blocked social media at least 18 times in 2019, every time acting president Juan Guaido was airing a speech online.

India remains the largest internet shutdown offender, with some of its internet blockages lasting for months in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir.

Recent news

Pakistan

July 17, 2024

Metrics show restrictions to Facebook are in effect on multiple providers in #Pakistan adding to the ongoing X ban imposed since 17 February; the new measure comes on the Islamic holy day of Ashura when authorities typically restrict mobile internet services.

Source

Bangladesh

July 16, 2024

Live metrics show that social media platform Facebook has been restricted on multiple internet providers in #Bangladesh; the incident comes as police crack down on student protests over government-imposed quotas, with deaths and hundreds of injuries reported

Source

Iran

July 10, 2024

As president-elect Masoud Pezeshkian prepares to take office, Iran has once again experienced severe internet disruptions.

Source

Turkey

July 1, 2024

Live metrics show subnational social media restrictions in effect in Kayseri, #Turkey, amidst widening unrest with shops and vehicles burned in anti-Syrian riots over child assault

Source