7 INTERNET SHUTDOWNS IN 2024 II. Triggers for internet shutdowns in 2024 Triggers of internet shutdowns refer to incidents and contexts during which authorities are more likely to impose internet shutdowns. Year after year, conflict, protests, elections, and exams have been the most consistent contexts in which authorities have imposed shutdowns. Shutdowns during conflict 103 conflict-related shutdowns in 11 countries 6 Following a violent year of war-related shutdowns in 2023,7 conflict remained the leading trigger in 2024 and reached a new peak for the number of episodes recorded in a single year. Authorities used a wide range of tactics to shut down the internet during conflict, including but not limited to cutting fiber optic cables,8 taking over internet service provider (ISP) offices,9 jamming devices,10 deploying cyberattacks to sabotage providers,11 destroying power and telecommunications infrastructure,12 Bahrain, Chad, Ethiopia, India, Israel, Myanmar, Pakistan, Palestine, Russia, Sudan, and Ukraine and disabling or seizure of terminals for LEO satellite internet.13 Regardless of the method, warring parties deliberately turned to internet shutdowns not only during fighting over controlled territory,14 but also while laying siege or in situations of occupation, often as a collective punishment or to terrorize the population.15 Through shutdowns military leaders enable war crimes and atrocities.16 6 Note: While there were no active conflicts ongoing in Bahrain and Chad in 2024, people in both countries experienced shutdowns as a result of a hacking group’s cyberattacks in response to Bahrain’s involvement in the ongoing conflict in Yemen and Chad’s support for a party to Sudan’s civil war, respectively. See: Africa Cybersecurity Magazine (2024). Chad's largest telecommunications provider hit by cyberattack by Anonymous Sudan. https://cybersecuritymag.africa/le-plus-grand-fournisseur-de-telecommunications-au-tchad-victime-de-cyberattaque-par-anonymous; The Hack Wire (2024). Bahrain Telecom Hit by DDoS Attack from Anonymous Sudan. https://www.thehackerwire.com/bahrain-telecom-hit-by-ddosattack-from-anonymous-sudan/ 7 8 See supra note 2. Access Now (2024). The Nation (2024). NBTC, police dismantle massive illegal cable network. https://www.nationthailand.com/blogs/news/general/40043830 9 Access Now (2024). #KeepItOn in times of war: Sudan’s communications shutdown must be reversed urgently. https://www.accessnow.org/ press-release/keepiton-sudan-shutdown/. 10 Ayeyarwaddy Times (2024). Due to the installation of a bomb near the Pathein Regional Military Council office, phone and internet lines are frequently cut off in the nearby neighborhood. https://ayartimes.com/?p=30643; Samaa (2024). Mobile, internet services suspended across Pakistan for Muharram. https://www.samaa.tv/2087317874-mobile-internet-services-suspended-across-pakistan-for-muharram 11 See supra note 6. Africa Cybersecurity Magazine (2024). 12 7amleh – The Arab Center for the Advancement of Social Media (2024). 7amleh Issues New Report on the Impact of War on Gaza’s Telecommunications Infrastructure. https://7amleh.org/2024/10/29/impact-of-war-on-gaza-s-telecommunications-infrastructure-en; RFA (2024). TNLA cuts phone and internet lines after airstrike in Mogok. https://www.rfa.org/burmese/news/tnla-cut-off-phone-internetmogok-11142024221229.html. 13 The Hindu (2024). Agencies probe seizure of Starlink devices in Manipur. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/agencies-probe-seizureof-starlink-devices-in-manipur/article68996996.ece, 14 See supra note 9. Access Now (2024). 15 Reuters Institute and University of Oxford (2024). Palestinians struggle to connect and get news amid digital shutdowns in Gaza: “Without the internet everything stops.” https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/news/palestinians-struggle-connect-and-get-news-amid-digitalshutdowns-gaza-without-internet; NBC News (2023). Israel promises a 'complete siege' of the Gaza Strip. What could that look like? https://www. nbcnews.com/news/world/israel-promises-complete-siege-gaza-strip-look-rcna119552 16 Access Now (2023). Evading accountability through internet shutdowns: trends in Africa and the Middle East. https://www.accessnow.org/ wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Evading-accountability-through-internet-shutdowns.pdf