Scenario Tracking Internet censorship | Should we use digital data? RESEARCH QUESTION: You are working in a country where the to information rights by preventing access government is known for shutting down the to the Internet? Internet during protests and social unrest and There has been a wave of public protests in wish to document this. You discover that you can access Google’s service disruption records online, which would allow you to identify likely down-times that can be cross-referenced with other additional sources of data. However, the government is adept at digital and Internet surveillance and could trace your browser Did the government of Country Y violate freedom of expression and access country Y for the last year. Recently this came to a head in a massive protest shutting down the downtown core of the capital city. Activists reported that the government blocked access to the Internet to suppress protests and prevent information from reaching out of country actors. INTERNET RIGHTS VIOLATIONS activity and search history back to you, identifying you as a human rights activist. TYPES OF POTENTIAL DATA What do you do? INTERNET SERVICE COMPANY RECORDS Given the government’s history of surveillance, your organisation has trained you to use VPNs (virtual private networks) for searching and communicating online. You decide that you MEDIA REPORTS can sufficiently hide your online tracks to do your research despite the risks. INTERNET TRAFFIC STATISTICSd SOCIAL MEDIA DOWNLOAD RECORDS OF NEW APPSa TELEPHONE RECORDSe INTERNET SPEED ANALYSIS GOVERNMENT BLOCKING ACCESS TO THE INTERNETf PRIVATE SECTOR/NGO STATEMENTSb PSIPHON DATA TAKEDOWN REQUESTS OR USER CLOSUREc a In particular the ones that are considered safe and accessible. b Statements from private companies (WhatsApp) & human rights organisations. c Reported by social media or companies. d Generally and on specific sites. e Mobile phone usage data. f In order to suppress protests. 17