Internet freedom fell for the fifteenth straight year, and the latest edition of Freedom on the Net makes it clear how widespread this slide has become.
The study covers seventy two countries that together represent about 89 percent of internet users worldwide, and the findings point to an environment where online expression grows riskier, platforms face more blocks, and governments keep expanding technical controls on daily communication. During the review period from June 2024 to May 2025, conditions deteriorated in twenty seven countries while only seventeen improved, which confirmed the long downturn documented year after year.
The report highlights the scale of exposure with numbers that feel heavier than in past editions. More than five and a half billion people are online, and at least eighty one percent live in countries where individuals were arrested for political, social, or religious speech. Seventy percent live where people were attacked or killed because of online activity. Seventy percent live where state backed commentators manipulated conversations on major platforms. Sixty nine percent live where political, social, or religious content was blocked. Sixty one percent live where access to social media was restricted at some point. Fifty two percent live in countries where authorities deliberately disrupted internet connections. Each measure shows a wide reach, and together they describe a global environment where rights online have eroded in ways that affect most users, not only those in the most restrictive states.
A Year Marked by Protests and Aggressive Crackdowns
Kenya registered the steepest decline in the index. The report documents how authorities handled large protests in June 2024 by cutting mobile connectivity for roughly seven hours and launching a wave of arrests tied to digital organizing. Those actions pushed the country to a six point drop on the one hundred point scale, one of the most severe single year losses recorded in this edition.
Venezuela also fell sharply. The study notes the extensive blocking of websites before and after the July 2024 presidential election, including social platforms, independent newsrooms, civil society pages, and tools designed to bypass censorship. Arrests targeted journalists and ordinary users who raised questions about the announced results. The four point decline reflected the depth of the disruption documented during the election period.
Serbia’s status shifted from free to partly free. The report describes detentions of activists and students who criticized the government after a fatal infrastructure collapse and explains how investigators used device extraction tools during these cases. Those steps contributed to the score drop that moved the country into a lower category.
Bangladesh saw the strongest improvement, rising by five points. The study recounts how the former government ordered an eleven day mobile shutdown while blocking major platforms during widespread protests. After a student led movement forced a political transition in August 2024, the interim government loosened several restrictions, although some harassment of opponents continued.
The Harshest Online Environments Remain Firmly Restrictive
China and Myanmar stayed at the very bottom, each scoring nine out of one hundred. The report details how Chinese provincial authorities increased filtering in ways that surpassed national systems and how the underlying technology behind the Great Firewall appeared in other countries, including Myanmar. The military regime in Myanmar passed a new cybersecurity law that banned common anticensorship tools and entrenched long standing limits on online expression.
Pressure Spreads in Democratic States
Even some of the most open countries recorded declines. Nine of the eighteen free countries slipped in score. Georgia lost four points after police raided researchers who studied online influence operations. A new foreign influence law forced civil society groups and news outlets with outside funding to register with the government. Later amendments added penalties for insulting public officials, which extended to online posts.
Germany dropped three points. The report highlights criminal cases linked to memes about politicians, growing self censorship among journalists who faced threats from far right actors, and cyberattacks traced to Russian aligned groups. The United States fell by three points as well, with the study noting detentions of foreign nationals for nonviolent online expression and investigations that created new pressure on digital activists.
Manipulated Online Information Keeps Growing
No indicator in the index has seen a more consistent global decline over fifteen years than the one tracking manipulation of online information. The report describes how governments and affiliated actors use paid commenters, coordinated networks, automated accounts, fake news sites, and increasingly AI generated content to shape online narratives. This steady push produces a public sphere where misleading content rises faster than reliable information.
Several countries faced notable operations. Ghana saw AI driven posts from bot networks that amplified incumbent messaging before the December 2024 election. India and Pakistan dealt with surges of inflammatory AI images after a major attack in Kashmir in April 2025. Bangladesh experienced waves of deceptive newslike sites that targeted political rivals. Singaporean researchers identified clusters of sites repeating Chinese state narratives, and the Philippines continued to face influence from paid online personalities.
AI, Satellite Internet, and Identity Rules Shape the Next Stage
The report warns that sovereign AI systems could encode censorship directly into national models. China and Vietnam require AI tools to follow political guidelines. Thailand released a large language model aligned with cultural norms that also reflects long standing restrictions relating to the monarchy. The United Arab Emirates advanced a broad AI strategy within a system known for intensive monitoring.
Satellite internet expanded in rural areas and conflict zones. Providers such as Starlink grew their reach, yet governments attempted to bring these networks under domestic control. Cuba seized satellite equipment, China drafted real time filtering requirements, Sudan nearly saw service suspended during regulatory disputes, and India pushed for local data storage requirements.
Online anonymity weakened across many regions. Vietnam mandated verification through government documents or local numbers. China tested centralized age verification linked to state identity systems. Belarus required identity registration for posting. Democracies introduced their own age checks, with Australia restricting access for users under sixteen, the United Kingdom applying broad verification rules, and Mississippi enforcing requirements that caused some platforms to block access inside the state.
The Outlook for Digital Rights
The report concludes that decisions involving AI governance, satellite infrastructure, and identity systems will heavily influence the future of internet freedom. Each development carries opportunities and risks, and the overall direction will depend on how governments and companies respond to these challenges. With billions living under restrictive conditions, the choices made now will determine whether the long decline can be slowed or reversed.
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