Service blocking

State-owned Internet service provider CANTV has imposed intermittent blocks on access to popular social media platforms, including Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, in the country.

The interruption is the latest in a series of temporary Internet access blocks imposed by the government since January this year as it tries to contain protests led by the opposition.

OONI data collected from Venezuela may corroborate these reports. The following graph aggregates OONI measurements from the testing of Twitter on multiple networks in Venezuela.

Chart: OONI Probe testing of Twitter in Venezuela in early May 2019 (source: OONI MAT).

While most measurements show that twitter.com was accessible on tested networks in Venezuela, we observe the presence of a few anomalous measurements on CANTV on 2nd May 2019, suggesting temporary Twitter blocking on that network.

During the reported period, OONI data presented anomalies in the testing of YouTube on 1st and 3rd May 2019. However, these anomalies are only observed on CANTV, and appear to have been short-lived each day

Chart: OONI Probe testing of YouTube in Venezuela in early May 2019 (source: OONI MAT).

Quite similarly, OONI data shows that the testing of Periscope presented anomalies between 1st to 3rd May 2019. Signs of blocking are only observed on CANTV, and the potential block appears to have been short-lived each day.

Chart: OONI Probe testing of Periscope in Venezuela in early May 2019 (source: OONI MAT).

OONI data does not show signs of Instagram blocking in Venezuela in early May 2019. While Instagram was tested on CANTV and 2 other networks (between 1st to 5th May 2019), it is possible that the (potentially short-lived) block may have occurred in moments when OONI Probe tests were not performed (particularly in light of the very limited measurement coverage during this period).