Resource Library

The Prepare, Prevent, Resist Resource Library is organized into four overarching categories to help you find the resources most relevant to you. When conducting advocacy, carrying out awareness raising efforts, or simply learning more about shutdowns and what you can do to prepare, it is likely that you will benefit from a range of resources from more than one of these categories.

These four guides are designed to better contextualize resources, offer connections between specific materials, and support you in navigating the library stacks. Think of these as your librarian’s reference books!

Legal Guide for Network Disruptions in Ethiopia

Author: Kinfe Micheal Yilma, PHD This Legal Guide provides legal guidance to new telecom operators as well as civil society groups on the

Unnecessary and Disproportionate

Author: Wakini Njogu This report explores how journalism and the online civic space were impacted by the 2021 Ugandan internet

United Nations Statement and Language Related to Shutdowns

The UN has released a number of reports that outline how the international standard-setting body talks about the key issues.

Navigating Internet Shutdowns – User Guide

Lawyers Hub Kenya built this user-friendly primer that provides an easy-to-read introduction to shutdown advocacy, including definitions of shutdowns, network

Preparing for Shutdowns/Censorship Ahead of Elections

This brief presentation developed by Access Now walks through some of the most common censorship circumvention tools, outlines the various

A Taxonomy of Internet Shutdowns

In this paper written and published by Access Now, the authors outline each of the various technical mechanisms for implementing

Measurement Lab

M-Lab provides the largest collection of open Internet performance data on the planet. As a consortium of research, industry, and

IODA (Internet Outage Detection and Analysis)

IODA, a project of the Internet Intelligence Lab at Georgia Tech University, monitors the internet in near real-time to identify

OONI (Open Observatory of Network Interference)

Born in 2012, the Open Observatory of Network Interference (OONI) is a non-profit free software project that aims to empower decentralized efforts

OPTIMA Network Measurement Training

In 2019 Internews developed its OPTIMA Network Measurement Training in collaboration with leading network measurement tool teams and experts. The

The Global Network Initiatives Country Legal Framework Resource

The Global Network Initiatives Country Legal Framework Resource (CLFR) is a detailed set of resources examining governments’ legal authorities to intercept communications, obtain access to communications data, or restrict the content of communications in more than 50 countries. Through this resource you can review a country’s laws pertaining to 1) provision of real-time lawful interception assistance; 2) disclosure of communications data; 3) national security and emergency powers; 4) censorship-related powers; 5) oversight of access-related powers, and 6) oversight of censorship-related powers.

Dialling in the Law: A comparative assessment of jurisprudence on internet shutdowns

This APC report “Dialling in the Law” outlines jurisprudence across the Global South on the legality of internet shutdowns. It tackles the growing challenge of government-mandated disruptions of internet access around the world, often under the guise of safeguarding public order and upholding national security interests.

The Laws That Let Internet Shutdowns Happen

Access Now’s Primer on Internet Shutdowns and the Law provides a comprehensive look at questions such as the legality of Internet shutdowns, existing legislation, impacts, and community members.

Internet Shutdowns: Module 2: Restricting Access and Content

This module, developed by Media Defense, gives a high level overview and review of regional and international level legal responses to internet shutdowns.

Digital rights strategic litigation: Suing governments when online freedoms are violated

APC’s guide to Digital Rights Strategic Litigation is a very quick and simple starting point for understanding where to begin when conceptualizing a strategic litigation campaign in Africa.

Internet Rights are Human Rights

The Internet rights are Human Rights is a series of training modules concerned with the relationship between human rights, ICTs and the internet. These modules are intended to help those who work on human rights and/or ICTs to understand ways in which the internet is affecting the enjoyment and protection of rights, and may provide useful legal background to inform both advocacy and litigation.

Primer on Researching International Law to Advance Digital Rights

While not specifically about Internet shutdowns, this primer on researching international law has three goals. First, to introduce advocates from the Americas, Africa and Asia to the international law frameworks applicable to promoting and protecting digital rights, particularly freedom of expression and privacy rights. Second, it serves as a guide to conducting legal research in support of digital rights locally, with an emphasis on the United Nations system and two regional human rights systems, namely, those operating under the auspices of the Organization of American States (OAS) and the African Union. Finally, it has a compilation of technical and strategic online resources for activists who seek additional support and/or guidance.

Navigating Litigation During Internet Shutdowns in Southern Africa

This resource offers insight and recommendations for navigating litigation during internet shutdowns in Southern Africa. It includes a number of infographics and other guides aimed at introducing best practices and strategies for beginning litigation.

Digital Rights and Freedom of Expression Online

These two trainings developed by Media Defense include a total of 16 modules that aim to upskill lawyers litigating digital rights issues across sub-Saharan Africa by introducing and diving deeper into concepts of freedom of expression and digital rights on the continent.

ABA Rule of Law Initiative Internet Freedom in Southeast Asia: Learning Module 3: Strategic Litigation & Advocacy in Defense of Internet Freedom

This curriculum developed by the American Bar Association introduces lawyers to the purposes and methods of conducting strategic litigation and advocacy in defense of Internet freedom, primarily freedom of expression and privacy rights. While it focuses specifically on Southeast Asia, it provides useful guidance for how to achieve an understanding of the legal and methodological frameworks employed by lawyers the world over to promote and defend basic human rights.

Emergency Assistance to Frontline Activists

Freedom House offers emergency assistance to frontline activists. This site details two such resources.

Women and the Internet

This social media campaign sought to raise awareness around how women rely on the Internet in Tanzania to highlight the consequences of shutting it down.

Security v Access: The Impact of Mobile Network Shutdowns, Case Study Telenor Pakistan

This report by Bytes for All, the Institute for Human Rights and Business, and the Internet Policy Observatory provides a case study outlining how research can be done in collaboration with an internet service provider (Telenor Pakistan) to better understand how an internet shutdown order is sent to ISPs and the role that companies can play in advocating for more transparency and document shutdown impact.

The Role of Internet Service Providers in Internet Shutdowns in Africa

This one-pager outlines the role that Internet service providers play in Internet shutdowns, including how they are involved, why they comply with government requests, and what ownership means for their likelihood to shut it off. This brief is a snapshot of a much larger research study conducted by Lisa Garbe at the University of St Galen about ISP ownership in Africa and its impacts on the prevalence of Internet shutdowns.