Look, back in 2020, when internet shutdowns started spiking amid protests and pandemics, the tech world buzzed with optimism. Activists sued, coalitions formed, even Big Tech grumbled about lost ad revenue. Everyone—me included—thought pressure from the #KeepItOn crowd would finally make governments blink.
Nope.
Access Now’s fresh report drops the hammer: 313 shutdowns in 52 countries last year, topping 2024’s already awful 304. That’s not a blip. It’s a trend. And it flips the script on any feel-good narrative about global connectivity winning out.
Why 2025’s Shutdown Surge Should Scare Silicon Valley
Here’s the raw stat that sticks: seven new countries joined the blacklist, pushing the total to 100 nations since tracking began in 2016. Myanmar led the pack with 95 blackouts—mostly courtesy of its military junta. India clocked 65, Pakistan 20, Iran 11. Tanzania jumped from three to eight, just to crush dissent. Russia? Emerging whispers suggest hundreds, maybe thousands, of disruptions region-wide, all pinned on ‘drone defense.’
But wait—conflict’s the big driver, third year straight. 125 shutdowns in 14 countries, hiding war crimes from Sudan to Gaza. Cross-border hits too: 18 of those, plus a nasty spike in jamming Low Earth Orbit satellites—14 incidents versus four last year. Starlink’s lifeline? Governments are gunning for it now.
In 2025, Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition documented 313 shutdowns in 52 countries, surpassing the appalling records from 2024 (304) and 2023 (289).
That’s straight from the report. Chilling, right? No spin—just cold numbers.
And the human cost? 70 shutdowns synced with murders, torture, rapes, atrocities in 21 spots. Kenya’s protest crackdowns, Libya’s chaos, Pakistan’s unrest—all went dark. Later, the truth trickles out, if at all. Shutdowns don’t just block Facebook; they erase evidence, let impunity flourish.
Who’s Cashing In on the Blackouts?
My cynical radar pings here. Sure, juntas and autocrats pull the plug, but who’s really profiting? Surveillance firms peddling ‘national security’ gear to enforce these cuts. Chinese hardware giants supplying the throttling tech—Huawei’s fingerprints all over it, though they deny. Even Western chipmakers quietly ship components that end up in kill switches.
Follow the money: while people starve for signal, some boardroom in Shenzhen or Shenzhen-lite racks up sales. That’s the ugly truth Big Tech ignores—their supply chains fuel the very repression they tweet against.
Resistance, though? It’s bubbling. Communities in Iran, Nepal, Tanzania hack workarounds—mesh networks, smuggled hotspots, satellite hacks. People power rising, as the report says. But is it enough?
Short answer: not yet. 75 shutdowns lingered into 2026 from 2025, up from 54. Perpetrators aren’t experimenting anymore; they’re institutionalizing blackouts. Myanmar’s military owns that playbook.
Here’s my unique take, one you won’t find in Access Now’s pages: this echoes the Cold War’s Iron Curtain, but digital. Back then, walls were steel; now they’re code. Except history shows resistance eventually cracks those walls—think Berlin ‘89. Bold prediction: by 2030, LEO satellites and decentralized nets force a reckoning. Governments jam, but physics fights back. Starlink’s constellation grows; jamming every bird gets exponentially pricier. Watch Myanmar or Sudan—first cracks appear there.
Can Satellite Internet Survive the Jammers?
LEO targeting jumped fourfold. Why? Because SpaceX’s birds pierced blackouts in Ukraine, Gaza proxies. Now, Iran, Russia, others blast signals. But here’s the rub—jamming’s a losing game. Costs soar with orbit density. A historical parallel: Vietnam War ECM (electronic countermeasures). U.S. jammed radios; Viet Cong went low-tech. Today? Quantum-secure meshes or balloon relays (Google’s Loon vibes) evade. Tech’s edge tilts to resistors.
Still, harms mount. Shutdowns erode trust in ‘democracies’ too—India’s no saint here. 241 blackouts tied to abuses since 2022. #KeepItOn demands probes: do cuts enable crimes? Hell yes.
Grave stuff. Economies tank—e-commerce dies, remittances halt. Kids miss school. Doctors can’t coordinate. And the terror? Pure collective punishment.
Is Global Resistance Turning the Tide?
Not fast enough. But credit where due: coalitions push recommendations—tech firms harden services, telcos resist orders, UN probes crimes. Stakeholders, step up.
Yet skepticism reigns. Twenty years covering Valley hype, I’ve seen ‘ethical AI’ pledges fizzle. Same here—words without wallets won’t unplug the juntas.
One-paragraph gut check: Russia’s surge isn’t about drones; it’s Putin’s paranoia post-Ukraine. Test it.
Deep dive needed on entrenched offenders. India’s 65? Elections, Kashmir, always an excuse. Pakistan’s 20 amid floods and floods of protests. Tanzania’s spike? Dissent-crushing 101.
The report nails it: shutdowns defy human rights baselines. Full stop.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What countries had the most internet shutdowns in 2025? Myanmar (95), India (65), Pakistan (20), Iran (11), Tanzania (8).
How do internet shutdowns hide human rights abuses? They block evidence during murders, tortures, protests—truth emerges late, if ever. 70 cases documented.
What’s the trend for internet shutdowns into 2026? 75 ongoing from 2025, up sharply; perpetrators aim for permanent cuts.
