Internet blackouts hit record high

The world witnessed a record number of internet shutdowns last year, as governments increasingly leaned on digital blackouts to suppress protests, dissent, and tighten control. A new report by Access Now names Myanmar, India, and Pakistan among the top offenders in 2024, highlighting the growing trend of restricting online discourse in these countries.

The #KeepItOn coalition, led by the New York-based digital rights group, documented 296 internet shutdowns across 54 countries. This surpassed the previous year's total of 283 shutdowns in 39 countries, marking a 35% increase compared to 2022, when 40 countries were affected.

Seven nations, the advocacy group's report said, were added to the list of first-time offenders. As 2024 ended, 47 shutdowns remained in effect into 2025, with 35 lasting over a year—a clear sign of their use as a tool of political control.

While conflict continued to be the leading cause of internet shutdowns for the second consecutive year, the trend was not confined to warzones. India, which dropped from the top spot in 2023, imposed no fewer than 84 shutdowns in 2024 — the highest of any democracy, according to Access Now.

Pakistan, with 21 shutdowns - the highest total ever for the country - ranked third, followed by Russia, which imposed 19 shutdowns, including seven in Ukraine. Myanmar topped the list, with the military regime implementing 85 shutdowns. This comes as the country's population continues to resist an increasingly oppressive dictatorship, four years after the junta seized power in a violent coup. To civil society's surprise, France, a long-established European democracy, also imposed an internet shutdown.

Commenting on the trends, Felicia Anthonio, #KeepItOn Campaign Manager at Access Now, cautioned that we are entering an era of democratic recession, where freedom of expression is increasingly restricted through tactics like internet shutdowns and censorship.

She also highlighted how these tactics are being used by far-right political movements and Big Tech to incite violence against marginalized communities and silence critics. "The ruling powers' disdain for people's voices and movements is marked clearly by an astounding 74 protest-related shutdowns affecting 24 countries in 2024. This is the highest number of shutdowns for this trigger we have ever seen in a single year, and it underscores a frightening trend towards rising authoritarianism and backsliding democracy," she told the Express Tribune.

While India positions itself as the world's largest democracy, it has recorded 855 internet shutdowns since 2016. Last month, a dozen rights groups wrote to the European Commission, accusing Narendra Modi's government of using various tactics to tighten control and stifle dissent over the past decade. "Shutdowns are incompatible with India's global leadership ambitions, whether on AI, digital governance, or skilling," said Namrata Maheshwari, Senior Policy Counsel at Access Now. No other democracy, she added, cuts people off from connectivity year after year without oversight or accountability. "We urge the authorities to repeal rights-violating laws and make 2025 a shutdown-free year for all people in India."

Pakistan, meanwhile, has enforced 77 internet shutdowns since 2016, according to data from Access Now, with 2024 marking its worst year yet. A report by Top10VPN.com, an independent VPN reviewer, found that the country—home to more than 240 million people—was the worst affected by internet disruptions last year, suffering an estimated $1.62 billion in financial losses due to various digital restrictions. The advocacy group's Asia Pacific Policy Counsel, Shruti Narayan, commented on the shutdowns imposed in 2024, stating that Pakistan had enacted the highest number of internet shutdowns in its history, which highlighted the ongoing erosion of democratic values. She called for an end to the obstruction of people's rights, whether through mobile internet shutdowns, VPN blocking, or efforts to impose a firewall on the country's internet gateways.

Since 2016, Access Now has documented 1,754 internet shutdowns worldwide, describing the trend as a story of people and communities forcibly disconnected from the world—and each other. "Their stories make it clear: even one shutdown is one too many," the group states in its annual report. The leading triggers, according to the digital advocacy group, were protests (74 shutdowns), exams (16 shutdowns), and elections (12 shutdowns)—all instances where restricting access to information carries serious and far-reaching consequences.

Platform blocks

According to Access Now, 2024 set a new record for platform blocks, with 71 instances across 35 countries. These restrictions on social media and messaging services, the group warned, are just as damaging as full internet shutdowns. "Authorities often use them to control information flows or target specific groups," the report stated. Notably, X was the most blocked platform globally for the first time, a shift that coincides with the platform's decline in content governance. "Signal and TikTok also saw sharp increases in blocks, alongside X, marking the sharpest percentage rise from the previous year," the report concluded.

Criticizing the justifications often cited for disrupting access to essential communication platforms, Access Now's Felicia Anthonio said: "Governments tend to cite a wide range of justifications to block access, but none of these excuses are legitimate. Authorities need to question whether shutdowns are necessary and the least restrictive measure available to address the issue at hand. The answer is clear: no, they are not."

Anthonio emphasized that Access Now's monitoring has repeatedly shown that blocking platforms does more harm than good. "Blocking platforms amplifies misinformation, restricts people's ability to verify information, and disrupts lives," she explained.