Freedom on the Net

Why Measure Internet Freedom?

As we increasingly rely on the internet, it is important that the rights we enjoy offline are also protected online. The freedoms of expression, access to information, privacy, and association and assembly enshrined in international covenants are fundamental to the upholding of liberal democratic values. Even in closed societies, digital technology can penetrate longstanding political and media restrictions, carving out a limited space for freedom online. 

Digital technology is a tool like any other; it can be used by both evaders and enforcers of government censorship and surveillance. Authoritarians, too, have understood the internet’s potential for individual and community empowerment and over the past few years have worked to build a new barrier of fear in the online domain. 

Given this emerging battleground for human rights, Freedom on the Net measures internet freedom in order to identify threats to rights and opportunities for positive change. Our reports seek to inform the wider community of activists, journalists, policymakers, entrepreneurs, and ordinary citizens in order to advocate for an internet characterized by freedom, openness, safety, and security for all. 

What Do We Measure?

Freedom on the Net measures the subtle and not-so-subtle ways that governments and non-state actors around the world restrict our rights online. Each country assessment includes a detailed narrative report and numerical score, based on methodology developed in consultation with international experts. This methodology includes three categories:

• Obstacles to Access

   

  details infrastructural, economic, and political barriers to access; government decisions to shut off connectivity or block specific applications or technologies; legal, regulatory, and ownership control over internet service providers; and independence of regulatory bodies;

• Limits on Content

   

  analyzes legal regulations on content; technical filtering and blocking of websites; other forms of censorship and self-censorship; the vibrancy and diversity of the online environment; and the use of digital tools for civic mobilization;

• Violations of User Rights 

  tackles legal protections and restrictions on free expression; surveillance and privacy; and legal and extralegal repercussions for online speech and activities, such as imprisonment, extralegal harassment and physical attacks, or cyberattacks.

Which Countries Do We Study?

Freedom on the Net has expanded from covering 15 countries in our 2009 pilot edition to 70 in the latest report. Countries are selected on the basis of the size of their internet population, their regional or global positioning, as well as the unique quality of their restrictions or protections on the internet. The countries selected for the report covers 88 percent of the global internet population, ensuring the project analyzes the vast majority of users.