FREEDOM ON THE NET 2024 Key Findings 1 Global internet freedom declined for the 14th consecutive year. Protections for human rights online diminished in 27 of the 72 countries covered by Freedom on the Net (FOTN), with 18 earning improvements. Kyrgyzstan received this year’s sharpest downgrade, as President Sadyr Japarov intensified his efforts to silence digital media and suppress online organizing. China shared its designation as the world’s worst environment for internet freedom with Myanmar, where the military regime imposed a new censorship system that ratcheted up restrictions on virtual private networks (VPNs). At the other end of the spectrum, Iceland maintained its status as the freest online environment, and Zambia secured the largest score improvement. For the first time in 2024, FOTN assessed conditions in Chile and the Netherlands, both of which showcased strong safeguards for human rights online. 2 Free expression online was imperiled by severe prison terms and escalating violence. In three-quarters of the countries covered by FOTN, internet users faced arrest for nonviolent expression, at times leading to draconian prison sentences exceeding 10 years. People were physically attacked or killed in retaliation for their online activities in a record high of at least 43 countries. Internet shutdowns and reprisals for online speech created even more perilous environments for people affected by several major armed conflicts around the world. 3 Censorship and content manipulation were combined to sway elections, undermining voters’ ability to make informed decisions, fully participate in the electoral process, and have their voices heard. Voters in at least 25 of the 41 FOTN countries that held or prepared for nationwide elections during the coverage period contended with a censored information space. In many countries, technical censorship was used to constrain the opposition’s ability to reach voters, reduce access to reliable reporting, or quell concerns about voting irregularities. In at least 21 of the 41 countries, progovernment commentators manipulated online information, often stoking doubt about the integrity of the forthcoming results and seeding long-term mistrust in democratic institutions. In addition, interference from governments and a reduction in transparency mechanisms on major social media platforms chilled the efforts of independent researchers and media groups to shed light on election-related influence operations. 4 In more than half of the FOTN countries that held or prepared for elections, governments took steps aimed at addressing information integrity, with mixed results for human rights online. The interventions included enforcing rules related to online content, supporting factchecking and digital literacy initiatives, and passing new guidelines to limit the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in campaigning. The impact on internet freedom depended on the extent to which each effort prioritized transparency, civil society expertise, democratic oversight, and international human rights standards. Examples from South Africa, Taiwan, and the European Union served as the most promising models. 5 Building a trustworthy online environment requires a renewed and sustained commitment to internet freedom. This year, FOTN indicators assessing limits on content dropped to their lowest average score in more than a decade, excluding the two countries covered in this edition for the first time—an indication that online censorship and manipulation are growing ever more extreme. The lack of access to a high-quality, reliable, and diverse information space has impeded people’s ability to form and express their views, engage productively in their communities, and advocate for government and company accountability. Policy interventions designed to protect information integrity can help build confidence in the online environment, provided they are anchored in free expression and other fundamental rights. Responses that fail to incorporate those principles will only hasten the global decline in internet freedom and democracy more broadly. 1