Access Now’s latest report (2023) on internet shutdowns

via Access Now post, with details of the report

By nearly every measure, 2023 is the worst year of internet shutdowns ever recorded - highlighting an alarming and dangerous trend for human rights. As we document in our new report, Shrinking democracy, growing violence: internet shutdowns in 2023 (pdf), governments around the world continue to shut down the internet and critical digital communication platforms to muzzle expression, block access to life-saving information, and cover up heinous crimes against humanity. 

In 2023, Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition documented 283 shutdowns in 39 countries. These are staggering results, marking the highest number of shutdown incidents in a single year since we began our monitoring in 2016. This reflects an additional 82 shutdowns, or a 41% increase, from 2022, when we recorded 201 shutdowns in 40 countries. It’s also a 28% increase from 2019, which was the previous record high with 221 shutdowns.