Bangladesh's internet freedom climbed for a second straight year, driven almost entirely by a rare stretch without government-ordered shutdowns, according to Freedom House's newly released Freedom on the Net 2026 report. Yet the same assessment found that people who post critical or politically sensitive content online remain exposed to arrest, surveillance and mob violence, with no measurable progress on that front.
A Modest Climb, Still "Partly Free"
The US-based watchdog scored Bangladesh 50 out of 100 this year, up from 45 in the previous cycle and 40 the year before that. It was the largest single-year gain among the 38 countries Freedom House examined, yet the country remains classified as "Partly Free," a status it has held continuously since 2013. The ranking system weighs three broad categories: obstacles to accessing the internet, restrictions on content, and violations of user rights. Bangladesh's improvement came almost entirely from the first category. Of the five points gained, four reflected the absence of internet shutdowns during the June 2025 to May 2026 review period - the first such stretch since 2016 - and one point came from a reduction in websites blocked for political or religious reasons.
User Rights Remain the Weak Point
In the user-rights category, which carries the heaviest weight in Freedom House's methodology, Bangladesh scored just 13 out of 40 - identical to last year. The report attributes this stagnation to continued state surveillance, laws that criminalize online expression, and a climate of intimidation against ordinary citizens and journalists alike. The review period spanned the final months of the interim government and the early months of the BNP administration, and found that both supporters of the Awami League and critics of the new administration faced prosecution for their online posts. Citing Human Rights Watch, the report documented four such arrests between March 31 and April 17. Separately, more than 280 journalists faced politically motivated cases as of May, the majority linked to alleged Awami League-aligned coverage of the 2024 uprising.
Media Attacks and Expanding Surveillance Tools
Freedom House singled out the December 2025 attacks on the offices of Prothom Alo and The Daily Star as a stark illustration of how online incitement can spill into physical violence. According to the report, rumors spread online accusing the two outlets of pro-India sentiment - used as coded language implying support for ousted leader Sheikh Hasina - which preceded mobs burning down both buildings and endangering staff inside. The report also flagged government efforts to expand surveillance infrastructure, citing reporting by The Daily Star on a Tk 95 crore allocation approved in May to expand the National Telecommunication Monitoring Centre's content-blocking capacity. Such investments suggest that even as shutdowns become rarer, the state's technical capacity to monitor and restrict online speech is growing rather than shrinking.
Regional and Global Context
Among South Asian nations assessed this year, Bangladesh's score of 50 now matches India, which slipped one point from last year. Pakistan remains in the "Not Free" category with a score of 27. Globally, Freedom House recorded a 16th consecutive year of declining internet freedom, underscoring that Bangladesh's narrow gains occurred against a broader worldwide trend of tightening digital controls, expanding surveillance mandates and growing legal risk for online speech.