Digital crackdown has never been tighter in Myanmar. Since the coup in February 2021, Myanmar's military regime has waged an unrelenting digital war on its people. Now in its fourth year of power, the junta continues to tighten its digital iron curtain, suppressing rights both online and off through internet shutdowns, advanced surveillance, and censorship. More than 6,200 people have been killed, and 28,370 arrested, with at least 1,840 detained for online expression alone — often for something as simple as a Facebook post or using a virtual private network (VPN). With near total control over the country’s telecom sector, the junta has proved itself to be one of the world’s worst abusers of digital repression, hunting down critics and opposition voices, and turning Myanmar into a surveillance state.
On the first day of 2025, the military enacted the controversial Cybersecurity Law, granting itself further power to block websites and monitor, censor, and punish online expression — a clear signal that the regime intends to continue intensifying its digital oppression. Yet, the sudden passage of the legislation that had been dormant for the last two years reveals the military’s desperation: a failing regime clinging to control, fearing the growing resistance movement that refuses to be silenced and has, over the last 12 months, shrunk the military’s control to just about 21 % of the country.