Government Internet Shutdowns Cost $19.7B in 2025 1/9/26, 2:49 PM IP Address Blocking Websites and apps are hosted on servers, each identified by an IP address that allows devices to locate and communicate with them. ISPs can block access by compiling lists of IP addresses associated with specific services and preventing traffic to or from those addresses. Because multiple websites or services are often hosted on a single IP address, this technique frequently results in overblocking, unintentionally restricting access to unrelated services. Domain Name System (DNS) Filtering DNS filtering operates similarly to IP blocking but is more granular, as it targets domain names rather than IP addresses. Domain name information, such as top10vpn.com , is stored across distributed DNS databases. When a user enters a domain, their browser relies on DNS resolvers to look up the corresponding IP address needed to reach the server hosting the site. ISPs can manipulate these resolvers to return false or misleading results, such as indicating that x.com doesn’t exist. Instead of loading normally, users are shown an error page. Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) Deep Packet Inspection analyses the contents of data packets travelling across a network, enabling authorities to block specific services, applications, or types of content. DPI is carried out by intermediary devices known as middleboxes, which play a central https://www.top10vpn.com/research/cost-of-internet-shutdowns/ Page 23 of 33