VPN services blocked in Sri Lanka as information controls tighten

Internet providers in Sri Lanka are in the vanguard of blocking access to digital security tools that allow users to work around censorship, according to new NetBlocks network measurement data. Technical evidence corroborates user reports of difficulty downloading, installing and connecting to various VPN services, widely used by Sri Lankans as a means to access blocked social media sites and messaging apps following Sunday’s attacks, further indicating that they have been implemented on a separate schedule to the social blocks. Sri Lanka previously blocked social media in March 2018 for a period of eight days, restricting access to a similar set of digital platforms and incurring an estimated $30m cost to the country’s GDP.

Source: netblocks.org