Sri Lanka has imposed a social media blackout amid curfew and protests, NetBlocks, an internet watchdog, has said. Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Viber and YouTube are among the sites that have been reportedly hit with the fresh restrictions. The South Asian nation has been battling a shortage of essentials as it grapples with the worst economic crisis in decades.
Real-time network data show Sri Lanka has imposed a nationwide social media blackout, restricting access to platforms including Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, YouTube, and Instagram as emergency is declared amid widespread protests. (sic),” NetBlocks tweeted.
In its report, the watchdog further said: “Real-time network data collected from over 100 vantage points across Sri Lanka show the restrictions coming into effect across multiple providers from midnight. Metrics corroborate user reports of service unavailability across the country, showing that all of Sri Lanka’s major network operators including Dialog, Sri Lanka Telecom, Mobitel, Hutch are covered by the measure.” The South Asian nation has a history of imposing countywide social media restrictions amid unrest, it underlined.The country of 22 million has been dealing with blackouts for up to 13 hours a day while the government scrambles to secure foreign exchange to pay for fuel imports, reports said.
