Freedom House • Is the judiciary independent, and do senior judicial bodies and officials support free expression, access to information, and press freedom online? 2. Are there laws that assign criminal penalties or civil liability for online activities, particularly those that are protected under international human rights standards? (0–4 points) • • Do specific laws—including penal codes and those related to the media, defamation, cybercrime, cybersecurity, and terrorism—criminalize online expression and activities that are protected under international human rights standards (e.g., journalism, discussion of human rights, educational materials, or political, social, cultural, religious, and artistic expression)? Are restrictions on online activities defined by law, narrowly circumscribed, and both necessary and proportionate to address a legitimate aim? 3. Are individuals penalized for online activities, particularly those that are protected under international human rights standards? (0–6 points) • • Are writers, commentators, journalists, bloggers, or social media users subject to civil liability, imprisonment, arbitrary detention, police raids, or other legal sanction for publishing, sharing, or accessing material on the internet in contravention of international human rights standards? Are penalties for defamation; spreading false information or “fake news”; cybersecurity, national security, terrorism, and extremism; blasphemy; insulting state institutions and officials; or harming foreign relations applied unnecessarily and disproportionately? 4. Does the government place restrictions on anonymous online communication or encryption? (0–4 points) • • • • • Are website owners, bloggers, or users in general required to register with the government? Does the government require that individuals use their real names or register with the authorities when posting comments or purchasing electronic devices, such as mobile phones? Do specific laws or binding legal decisions require digital platforms, content hosts, or other intermediaries to identify or verify their customers’ real names? Are individuals prohibited from using encryption services to protect their communications? Do specific laws or binding legal decisions undermine strong encryption protocols, such as mandates for traceability or real-time monitoring, or requirements that decryption keys be turned over to the government? 5. Does state surveillance of internet activities infringe on individuals’ right to privacy? (0–6 points) • • • • • • • • Does the constitution, specific laws, or binding legal decisions protect against government intrusion into private lives? Do state actors comply with these laws or legal decisions, and are they held accountable, including by an independent judiciary or other forms of public oversight, when they do not? Do state authorities engage in the blanket collection of communications metadata and/or content transmitted within the country? Are there legal guidelines and independent oversight on the collection, retention, and inspection of surveillance data by state security and law enforcement agencies, and if so, do those guidelines adhere to international human rights standards regarding transparency, necessity, and proportionality? Do state authorities monitor publicly available information posted online (including on websites, blogs, social media, and other digital platforms), particularly for the purpose of deterring activities protected under international human rights standards such as independent journalism, community building and organizing, and political, social, cultural, religious, and artistic expression? Do authorities have the technical capacity to regularly monitor or intercept the content of private communications, such as email and other private messages, including through spyware and extraction technology? Do local authorities such as police departments surveil people’s communications (including through International Mobile Subscriber Identity-Catchers or IMSI catcher technology), and if so, are such practices subject to rigorous guidelines and judicial oversight? Do state actors use artificial intelligence and other advanced technology for the purposes of online surveillance, without appropriate oversight? @freedomhouse freedomhouse.org 39