Iraq: Exam-Related Internet Shutdowns Steady But More Expected

Iraq

17 June, 2023 01:00 - 05:30 (4 hours)

Local Impact

Iraq is experiencing its longest stretch without an Internet Shutdown this month following the eighth scheduled exam-related Internet shutdown in the early morning of 17 June.

As we have repeatedly written about here on Pulse, Internet shutdowns cause great harm to a country’s economy and society and are in our opinion NOT the appropriate mechanism to cope with potential exam cheating.

Data and Analysis

On Saturday, 17 June, Iraq experienced its eighth Internet shutdown since the beginning of the month. Like the previous seven shutdowns, IODA measurements show a similar drop from 01:00 to 05:30 (UTC).

Chart from IODA showing measurements of Internet connectivity and the drop during the shutdown period.

The shutdown also showed up in Cloudflare Radar measurements.

Chart from Cloudflare Radar showing the Internet shutdown in Iraq on 15 and 17 June.

If we look at shutdown activity over the past month via IODA, there has been less activity in recent days. However, this is expected to change soon with high school exams beginning later this week.