Service blocking
YouTube, Periscope
The state-owned Internet service provider CANTV (AS8048) implemented a block on YouTube and Periscope on May 24 during the Venezuelan presidential crisis of 2019.
- Total Duration 2 hours
Venezuela
- Population
- 28,516,896
Freedom House rates Internet freedom as Not Free
Local impact
During the closing event of the Plan País International Congress, held at the Andrés Bello Catholic University (UCAB) in Caracas, YouTube and Periscope were blocked by CANTV (ASN: AS8048), the main internet provider and a state-owned company in Venezuela.
This block occurred in the context of the 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis, which pits Nicolás Maduro against Juan Guaidó, and this pattern of blocks since January 2019 is part of a "strong escalation in internet censorship and control" according to Conexion Segura y Libre's VEsinFiltro program. The short and precisely timed blocks, such as this one, are frequently used to silence the live broadcasts of statements and public acts by Juan Guaidó.
The block also affected multiple Google services, including Google Drive, Google Calendar, Google Meet, and Google Chat.
Other supporting information
OONI data and other measurements by VEsinFiltro show the blocking of YouTube and Periscope on CANTV (AS8048) the state-owned ISP that is also the most important service provider.
VEsinFiltro reports that Periscope was blocked using SNI filtering, while YouTube was blocked using IP blocking, affecting Google Drive, Calendar and many other google services