Turkey ranks among world’s worst for internet freedom: Freedom House
14.11.2025
By Turkish Minute
Source:https://www.turkishminute.com/2025/11/14/turkey-
Turkey is among the five countries with the steepest long-
Freedom House gave Turkey a score of 31 out of 100 in its annual Freedom on the Net 2025 assessment, placing it in the bottom tier of 72 countries evaluated. The report emphasized Turkey’s longstanding reliance on censorship, including website blocking and throttling of social media, and said authorities have intensified digital controls over the past 15 years. The assessment covers developments from June 2024 to May 2025 and places Turkey among nations like Egypt, Pakistan, Russia and Venezuela that have seen the sharpest declines in online freedoms.
Turkey’s subcategory scores reflect deep issues: 13 out of 25 for obstacles to access due to high costs, government control over infrastructure and regulatory bias; 10 out of 35 for limits on content, including blocking, forced deletions and manipulation; and 8 out of 40 for user rights violations, encompassing surveillance, penalties and intimidation.
Recent incidents in Turkey illustrate the type of disruptions and controls that Freedom House warns about, although they were not part of the report’s documented cases.
In July 2024 internet access was throttled for a week in Kayseri province amid violent demonstrations against Syrian refugees. In March 2025 social media was slowed for 42 hours during protests over the arrest of İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, an opposition figure. These slowdowns matched the patterns of deliberate connectivity restrictions that the report links to broader government efforts to curb mobilization.
In August 2024 Turkey’s Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK) blocked Instagram for nine days without initial explanation, following reports that the platform had removed Turkish users’ post mourning the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. Scores of other social media accounts, including those of independent outlet Bianet and İmamoğlu himself, were suspended at Turkish officials’ request.
The report also criticized new legal powers in Turkey that compel platforms to remove content critical of political leadership. A new Cyber Security Law passed in March 2025 grants authorities broad access to data stored in Turkey with a court order and imposes up to five years in prison for refusing to comply or spreading “false information” about data leaks. Critics say the law threatens both privacy and online expression.
The findings come amid a global decline in internet freedom for the 15th straight year, with conditions worsening in 27 of 72 countries assessed. China and Myanmar ranked worst overall, while Iceland topped the list as the freest. Freedom House warned that authoritarian regimes like Turkey’s are using digital tools to entrench power, particularly during elections and protests.