In the last two decades, the Internet has gradually become an essential tool for work, information and also for leisure. Currently, we are immersed in a transition to the digital world where the network of networks plays a very important role. Thus, an open, secure and reliable Internet connection is essential for rights such as freedom of expression and association. Not all nations offer the same freedoms, and NetBlocks with its reports, news and tools, aims to reflect the situation of the Internet around the world.
Each country in the world has its legislation and its way of acting in relation to Internet connectivity. In some nations there is more freedom, and we find a more neutral and free network. However, in other countries the situation is quite different and there are fewer freedoms. Regardless of this, there are other major problems as well. One of them would be the lack of connectivity when a large number of people are left without the Internet. In these cases, in addition to the loss of communications, we have to add the economic cost that does not allow companies to do business.
NetBlocks: the organization that works for an independent Internet
NetBlocks was born as an initiative of civil society. His idea is to work at the intersection of digital rights, cybersecurity and Internet governance. Its objective is to create an independent and non-partisan free network. With the effort of this organization, it seeks to create an open and inclusive digital future for all.
It seeks to promote change through social enterprise, thanks to its reports in an accessible and contextualized format that cover topics such as:
- Internet access.
- The digital policy.
- The energy supply in countries around the world. A serious blackout can leave many people incommunicado and, in addition, cause financial damage.
NetBlocks, to develop these tasks, works in three areas:
- The Internet Observatory in which a measurement of human rights is made on the Internet in real time. In this section we find a tool to check our Internet connection in relation to connectivity and freedom.
- The impact of informing the world with data in which a series of news related to the subject is offered.
- The cost tool that calculates the cost of shutting down the Internet in a country for a period of time.
Next, we are going to explain and develop these three aspects that NetBlocks offers us.
The NetBlocks Internet Observatory
The Internet Observatory uses novel measurement and classification techniques. Its purpose is to detect Internet interruptions, online censorship and cyber attacks on critical infrastructures. With this work, it is intended to defend human rights and democracy.
At NetBlocks, for this non-partisan Internet observation and monitoring, they use the highest ethical standards of fairness and accuracy. Thanks to these efforts, they improve digital integrity by exposing power outages, connectivity failures, and censorship. In addition, they offer recommendations to improve Internet governance and digital policy to create more resilient and decentralized networks. The initiative also seeks to promote safe, protected and private citizen participation through platforms that are free of censorship and restrictions. It seeks to achieve transparency, together with respect for fundamental human rights and democracy.
One of the tools it offers us is used to check our Internet connection.
Thanks to it, information about network interruptions, social network restrictions and connection latency is collected.
If we want to test our Internet connection, you must click here . A recommended thing to do the test is not to use any VPN, to make sure that our connection will be tested correctly. These are the results we have obtained using this NetBlocks tool:
Here we can see that Network Health offers a 99% result. That means that in the aspects mentioned above my connection is in very good health. He also comments that my Network Latency, or network latency, is 316 ms. Although, it should be noted that the latency is somewhat high, we must bear in mind that the server where the test is carried out is not nearby, so we should not worry about this.
The impact of informing the world
Without a doubt, one of the most important ways for change to occur is to inform the world. If it is known that there is an unfair situation in one part of the globe, it must be reported. Either for reasons of censorship, or the lack of adequate infrastructure, it can negatively affect the population.
If an injustice or failure related to the Internet is reported to the media, that news or report can cause notoriety. In the end, thanks to this information you can influence governments, companies and individuals to act. Thus, through pressure from nations, organizations and individuals, it is possible to achieve greater respect for fundamental rights. In other cases as well, they can make it easier for those countries that need help to receive it.
NetBlocks, in that sense, has press coverage and references with news related to these issues. In this way, it informs and investigates incidents of telecommunications interruptions, Internet controls and cyber security that are regularly covered by the media. In that sense, they collect the most important news, from organizations and prestigious media such as The Times, New York Post, The Guardian, CNN, Euronews, Fox News and more.
Here you have an example with news related to these matters:
In these headlines you can see how censorship is affecting Belarus. There is also talk of the explosion of improperly stored chemicals in Beirut, and the catastrophic situation that followed. As you can see, they are about censorship issues, and in the case of Beirut, also about many human lives together with the destruction of critical infrastructure.
On the other hand, NetBlocks has its Twitter account, where Internet-related incidents are published. Thus, for example, in Pakistan there was a power cut that seriously affected their communications.
Finally, it should be noted that they have a reports section where they further develop all the information we have.
The NetBlocks Cost Tool
The Internet Society and NetBlocks have partnered to develop a tool to better measure the cost caused by the lack of Internet service, and try to convince governments to maintain the Internet connection with the fewest possible interruptions.
The cost tool or COST is an online tool based on data, which will allow anyone to quickly and easily estimate the economic cost of the lack of Internet service. In this way, governments, journalists, researchers and companies will be able to make quick calculations of what it may mean to be without the Internet.
If you want to use this tool, you have to click on this link . For example, this is the estimate of the impact it would have if in Spain the Internet connection was lost for 6 hours.
We could also use it to make comparisons. For example, with Pakistan that we talked about earlier, because it had an electrical blackout that affected Internet connectivity.
As you can see, in Spain, due to the fact that the Internet is used more when doing business, the cost impact is notably higher. Finally, as you can see, NetBlocks provides us with valuable information about the Internet connection of different countries, and, in addition, it quantifies the cost that it supposes to stop working in a nation.
