NetBlocks

NetBlocks is an independent watchdog organization focused on cybersecurity, Internet governance, and the measurement of online restrictions. Its service was launched in 2017 with an emphasis on observing Internet freedom and documenting how governments, telecommunications providers, and other actors affect access to online services. Rather than operating as a conventional consumer technology brand, NetBlocks functions as a research, monitoring, and public-interest information organization whose work is used by journalists, civil-society groups, researchers, policymakers, and people affected by communications disruptions. The organization publishes original reporting about Internet shutdowns, platform blocking, censorship, and the resilience of communications infrastructure. Its public-facing tools and analysis are designed to help observers identify possible restrictions and understand their scope. NetBlocks has also developed methods for estimating the economic consequences of network outages, allowing an Internet disruption to be discussed not only as a civil-liberties issue but also as an event with measurable effects on commerce, productivity, public services, and national economies. Its reporting has included assessments of shutdown costs in countries experiencing political unrest. NetBlocks became particularly visible through coverage of politically sensitive events and emergencies. In Pakistan in November 2017, it worked with the Digital Rights Foundation to document the blocking of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and other social-media services during protests associated with Tehreek-e-Labaik. During the Sudanese protests of 2018 and 2019, it reported what it characterized as a broad censorship regime affecting social-media access. It also monitored connectivity and censorship surrounding the attempted coup in Gabon in 2019, calculated the economic cost of a three-day shutdown during Zimbabwean fuel protests, and tracked the blocking of Wikipedia and other services during the Venezuelan political crisis. The organization has also reported on disruptions in Somalia and the war in Ukraine. In July 2020, during political developments involving Somalia's parliament and Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire, NetBlocks reported an interruption that it said impeded media coverage and contradicted a telecommunications operator's explanation that the outage resulted from windy conditions. From February 2022 onward, it established a reporting initiative covering the Russian invasion of Ukraine, including communications disruptions at nuclear facilities and in conflict areas. NetBlocks' influence comes partly from the way its measurements are translated into timely, accessible reporting. Peer-reviewed research published in Nature has described the organization as having earned substantial trust among communities worldwide, helping information circulate during emergencies and episodes of Internet censorship. At the same time, its methods and user-facing monitoring practices have attracted scrutiny. A former website feature conducted checks to determine whether sites were blocked for visitors without explicit consent. Researcher Collin Anderson raised concerns about the potential risks of that approach, and NetBlocks later said it removed the checks in 2020 because the resulting data was not sufficiently useful. A related dispute over the domain netblocks.fyi led to a World Intellectual Property Organization proceeding in 2020 and prompted calls from members of the OTF-Talk mailing list for greater methodological transparency, open-source tools, and release of measurement data. NetBlocks prevailed in the domain complaint, while Anderson moved the critical website to another domain. NetBlocks' positioning therefore combines technical measurement, investigative reporting, and public-interest advocacy. Its work is centered on visibility: making otherwise difficult-to-observe Internet disruptions legible to the public and to institutions…

NetBlocks emerged in 2017 as a watchdog service devoted to Internet freedom, cybersecurity, and the governance of online infrastructure. Its central purpose was to observe and explain disruptions that are often difficult for the public to verify independently, including government-imposed shutdowns, service blocking, and failures affecting particular regions or networks. The organization combined technical network observation with public reporting so that incidents could be understood in near-real time and placed in a political, humanitarian, or economic context. One of NetBlocks' earliest documented interventions came on 25 November 2017, when it worked with Pakistan's Digital Rights Foundation to provide information about nationwide restrictions on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and other social-media services during protests linked to Tehreek-e-Labaik. This established a recurring pattern in the organization's work: collecting evidence during fast-moving political events and making the results available to journalists, civil-society organizations, and affected communities. NetBlocks subsequently expanded its monitoring across Africa and Latin America. During the 2018–2019 Sudanese protests, it reported extensive restrictions on social-media websites and characterized the country as having a broad Internet-censorship regime. It monitored connectivity conditions after the attempted coup in Gabon in 2019, and it examined the economic consequences of the shutdown that followed Zimbabwean fuel protests. Its analysis estimated the cost of the three-day disruption at approximately 17 million dollars for Zimbabwe; the figure is retained here as a reported historical estimate rather than as a company financial result. NetBlocks also tracked the blocking of Wikipedia and other censorship incidents during Venezuela's presidential crisis, where its findings received international media attention. The organization continued to apply its methods to political communications and disputed explanations for outages. In July 2020, when Somalia's parliament passed a motion of no confidence in Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire, NetBlocks reported a disruption that limited media coverage and public reaction. Its evidence contradicted Hormuud Telecom's claim that the interruption was caused by windy conditions, illustrating how the organization uses network measurements to test explanations offered by operators or authorities. NetBlocks' public role was accompanied by debate about methodology and user privacy. Its website formerly performed checks against other websites to determine whether they appeared blocked for a visitor. Researcher Collin Anderson argued that these checks were conducted without consent and could expose users to risk. NetBlocks later said that it removed the mechanism in 2020 because the data it generated was not sufficiently reliable. A further dispute followed when Anderson created netblocks.fyi, a site critical of the organization. NetBlocks brought a complaint before the World Intellectual Property Organization and won the proceeding in November 2020. The dispute prompted negative reactions on the OTF-Talk mailing list and demands that NetBlocks release its tools as open source, publish its methods for independent auditing, and make its measurement data available for scrutiny. Anderson subsequently moved the critical site to netblocked.org. From February 2022, NetBlocks established a dedicated reporting initiative on communications disruption during Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Its coverage included efforts to document the disabling of communications at nuclear sites and in conflict areas. More broadly, peer-reviewed research published in Nature has recognized NetBlocks' high level of trust among communities worldwide and its role in facilitating information during emergencies and censorship events. The organization's historical development has thus combined technical observation, investigative reporting, economic-impact analysis, and digital-rights-oriented public communication. Its identity remains that of an Internet observatory and watchdog rather than a conventional software vendor.

1. 2022Ukraine communications-disruption reporting initiative

   NetBlocks began extensive reporting on communications disruptions connected with Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

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2. 2020Removal of website-blocking checks

   NetBlocks said it removed a user-facing checking mechanism after concerns about consent, risk, and the quality of the resulting data.

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3. 2020World Intellectual Property Organization domain proceeding

   NetBlocks won a complaint concerning the netblocks.fyi domain.

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4. 2019Expansion of political-event monitoring

   NetBlocks reported on censorship and connectivity disruptions in Sudan, Gabon, Zimbabwe, and Venezuela.

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5. 2017Service launched to monitor Internet freedom

   NetBlocks launched as a watchdog service monitoring cybersecurity, Internet governance, and restrictions on online access.

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6. 2017Pakistan censorship monitoring

   NetBlocks and the Digital Rights Foundation documented nationwide restrictions on major social-media platforms during protests in Pakistan.

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A public-interest Internet observatory and research organization that provides independent evidence about network disruptions, online censorship, Internet governance, and the economic consequences of connectivity loss.

• Internet ObservatoryNetwork monitoring and public-interest research2017

  NetBlocks' observatory work monitors Internet connectivity, service blocking, and network disruptions. It turns technical observations into public reporting intended to help researchers, journalists, policymakers, and affected communities assess the scale and significance of an outage or censorship event.

• Internet shutdown economic-impact assessmentsEconomic analysis

  NetBlocks publishes estimates of the economic effects of network disruptions. These assessments provide a way to quantify the consequences of shutdowns for national economies and complement the organization's civil-liberties and Internet-governance reporting.

• Censorship and connectivity reportingResearch and reporting2017

  The organization produces rapid analysis of blocked platforms, degraded connectivity, and communications failures during political unrest, emergencies, and armed conflict. Its reporting has covered events in Pakistan, Sudan, Gabon, Zimbabwe, Venezuela, Somalia, and Ukraine.

• 2020Removal of consent-sensitive website checksStrategy

  NetBlocks' website formerly tested whether other sites appeared blocked for visitors. Researcher Collin Anderson criticized the practice because the checks were performed without user consent and could create risks.

  What changed. NetBlocks removed the checks and stated that the data produced by the feature was not sufficiently useful.

  Aftermath. The change did not end broader debate about NetBlocks' measurement methods. During a related domain dispute, members of the OTF-Talk mailing list called for open-source tools, auditable methodologies, and public release of measurement data.

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• 2020Challenge to the netblocks.fyi domainOther

  Researcher Collin Anderson established a website critical of NetBlocks at the netblocks.fyi domain.

  What changed. NetBlocks filed a complaint with the World Intellectual Property Organization and won the proceeding in November 2020.

  Aftermath. Anderson moved the critical website to netblocked.org, while the proceeding intensified public calls for transparency around NetBlocks' tools and data.

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• 2022NetBlocks launches reporting initiative on communications disruption in Ukraine

  Beginning in February 2022, NetBlocks expanded reporting on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, documenting communications disruptions at nuclear sites and in conflict zones.

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• 2020NetBlocks disputes explanation for Somalia connectivity disruption

  During Somalia's parliamentary no-confidence proceedings involving Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire, NetBlocks reported an Internet disruption that it said hindered media coverage and challenged a telecommunications operator's explanation that wind caused the outage.

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• 2020NetBlocks removes non-consensual website-blocking checks

  After researcher Collin Anderson criticized website checks that tested whether services were blocked for visitors without their consent, NetBlocks said it removed the feature because its data quality was inadequate.

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• 2020NetBlocks wins dispute over netblocks.fyi domain

  NetBlocks filed a World Intellectual Property Organization complaint concerning the critical netblocks.fyi domain and prevailed in the proceeding. The dispute also generated calls for open-source tools, auditable methods, and public measurement data.

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• 2019NetBlocks reports extensive Internet censorship during Sudanese protests

  During the 2018–2019 Sudanese protests, NetBlocks reported widespread restrictions affecting social-media services and described the country as operating an extensive Internet-censorship regime.

  RegulationOther
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• 2019NetBlocks monitors connectivity during the attempted coup in Gabon

  NetBlocks tracked censorship and communications conditions in Gabon following the attempted coup d'état.

  RegulationOther
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• 2019NetBlocks estimates the economic cost of Zimbabwe Internet shutdown

  The organization assessed the economic consequences of a three-day Internet shutdown during Zimbabwean fuel protests.

  Other
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• 2019NetBlocks tracks Wikipedia blocking during Venezuela political crisis

  NetBlocks monitored the blocking of Wikipedia and other censorship incidents during the Venezuelan presidential crisis, attracting coverage from international media.

  RegulationOther
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• 2017NetBlocks and Digital Rights Foundation document social-media censorship in Pakistan

  NetBlocks and the Digital Rights Foundation reported nationwide blocking of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and other social platforms during protests associated with Tehreek-e-Labaik.

  RegulationOther
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1. NetBlocks
2. NetBlocks official website