METHODOLOGY
In the context of DigitalReach, digital rights are human rights involving the use of
technology. The report is based on the scope of the organization’s work, exploring
how technology affects human rights from the perspective of civil and political rights.
This report summarizes the development of digital rights in Southeast Asia from January
to December 2025. It covers the digital rights situation in eight Southeast Asian countries:
Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam,
which are DigitalReach’s target countries.
The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of digital rights developments in 2025.
These developments help deepen understanding of both the local context in each
country and the broader regional context, based on the trends and issues they share.
The report also serves as a foundational source of information to support the design
and implementation of initiatives that are responsive to these contexts.
The report has been reformatted from its previous 2023 version. The format of this 2025
report is based on DigitalReach’s revised organizational strategies. Under these new
strategies, the organization’s work is divided into three main areas: Control of Information,
Platform Accountability, and Digital Security.
ISSUES
Controls of
Information
DEFINITIONS
State control of information through approaches including, but
not limited to, internet restrictions, censorship, and deployment
of a state-affiliated cyber army.
Platform
Accountability
Accountability of social media platforms according to human rights
principles—for example, respecting freedom of expression by
not censoring content at the regime’s request and making efforts
to ensure that their platforms do not fuel disinformation and
propaganda through their policies and design choices.
Digital Security
Ability of political dissidents to stay safe in the digital sphere.
This includes their online communications, data, and identities
being safeguarded from surveillance, interception, manipulation,
or retaliation by hostile actors, particularly authoritarian
governments.
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