India leads world’s internet shutdowns

Internet shutdowns in 2020 cost India $2.8 billion, topping a list of 21 countries that curbed citizens’ web access, according to digital privacy and security research group Top10VPN
 

COST OF INTERNET SHUTDOWNS BY COUNTRY*
		Cost ($millions)	Duration (hours)	Users affected (millions)
1. India	2,779.3 		8,927 			10.3
2. Belarus	336.4 			218 			7.9
3. Yemen	236.8 			912 			7.9
4. Myanmar 	189.9 			8,808 			0.2
5. Azerbaijan 	122.6 			1,128 			8.0
6. Ethiopia 	111.3 			1,536 			19.5
7. Sudan	68.7 			36 			13.2
8. Turkey	51.1 			18 			61.7
9. Syria	35.9 			79 			5.8
10. Tanzania	27.5 			432 			14.7

  
COST OF SHUTDOWNS BY REGION

TOTAL: $4.01bn

Asia $2,969.2m
Europe $510.3m
Middle East & N. Africa $289.6m
Sub-Saharan Africa $237.4m
South America $2.4m

Internet disruptions lasted 49% longer in 2020 than in 2019, but resulted in 50% less economic impact because they were concentrated in poorer regions – 2019 shutdowns cost $8.05bn


*Countries known to impose more restrictive internet controls, such as China and North Korea, excluded from report because of lack of publicly accessible data
 

Sources: Top10VPN Global Cost of Internet Shutdowns in 2020, Bloomberg 
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