Editing Telecommunications in Sudan (section)

==Internet==
As of 2011, internet access was widely available in urban areas, but limited by lack of infrastructure in rural areas.<ref name="loc2015">{{citation-attribution|1={{Cite encyclopedia |last=Shinn |first=David H. |title=Radio, Television, and Internet |editor-last=Berry |editor1-first=LaVerle |url=https://www.loc.gov/rr/frd/cs/pdf/CS_Sudan.pdf |encyclopedia=Sudan: a country study |date=2015 |publisher=[[Federal Research Division]], [[Library of Congress]]|isbn=978-0-8444-0750-0|edition=5th|location=Washington, D.C.|pages=275}}}} Though published in 2015, this work covers events in the whole of Sudan (including present-day South Sudan) until the 2011 secession of South Sudan.</ref>

* [[List of countries by number of Internet users|Internet users]]: 12 million users, 46th in the world; 21.0% of the population, 142nd in the world (2012).<ref name=NIUCalc>Calculated using penetration rate and population data from [https://www.census.gov/population/international/data/idb/rank.php "Countries and Areas Ranked by Population: 2012"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170329060848/https://www.census.gov/population/international/data/idb/rank.php |date=2017-03-29 }}, Population data, International Programs, U.S. Census Bureau, retrieved 26 June 2013</ref><ref name=ITU-IndividualsUsingTheInternet>[http://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Documents/statistics/2013/Individuals_Internet_2000-2012.xls "Percentage of Individuals using the Internet 2000-2012"], International Telecommunication Union (Geneva), June 2013, retrieved 22 June 2013</ref>
* [[List of countries by number of broadband Internet subscriptions|Fixed broadband]]: 18,472 subscriptions, 131st in the world; 0.1% of population, 172nd in the world (2012).<ref name=NIUCalc/><ref name="FixedBroadbandITUDynamic2012">[http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/ICTEYE/Reporting/DynamicReportWizard.aspx "Fixed (wired)-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants 2012"], Dynamic Report, ITU ITC EYE, [[International Telecommunication Union]]. Retrieved on 29 June 2013.</ref>
* [[List of countries by number of broadband Internet subscriptions|Wireless broadband]]: 5.6 million subscriptions, 31st in the world; 16.4% of the population, 78th in the world (2012).<ref name="MobleBroadbandITUDynamic2012">[http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/ICTEYE/Reporting/DynamicReportWizard.aspx "Active mobile-broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants 2012"], Dynamic Report, ITU ITC EYE, [[International Telecommunication Union]]. Retrieved on 29 June 2013.</ref>
* [[List of countries by number of Internet hosts|Internet hosts]]: 99, 211th in the world (2012).<ref name=CIAWFB-Sudan-2013/>
* [[IPv4]]: 283,904 addresses allocated, less than 0.05% of the world total, 6.3 addresses per 1000 people (2012).<ref>IPv4 address figures include Sudan and [[South Sudan]].</ref><ref>[http://www.countryipblocks.net/country-blocks/select-formats/ Select Formats] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090513033601/http://www.countryipblocks.net/country-blocks/select-formats/ |date=2009-05-13 }}, Country IP Blocks. Accessed on 2 April 2012. Note: Site is said to be updated daily.</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070613003851/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2119.html Population], ''[[The World Factbook]]'', [[United States]] [[Central Intelligence Agency]]. Accessed on 2 April 2012. Note: Data are mostly for 1 July 2012.</ref>
* [[Top-level domain]]: [[.sd]]<ref name=CIAWFB-Sudan-2013/>

===Internet censorship and surveillance===

Sudan was listed as engaged in substantial Internet filtering in the social and Internet tools areas, in selective filtering in the political area, and as no evidence of filtering in conflict/security area by the [[OpenNet Initiative]] in August 2009. Sudan openly acknowledges filtering content that transgresses public morality and ethics or threatens order. The state's regulatory authority established a special unit to monitor and implement filtration; this primarily targets pornography and, to a lesser extent, gay and lesbian content, dating sites, provocative attire, and many anonymizer and proxy Web sites.<ref>[http://opennet.net/research/profiles/sudan "ONI Country Profile: Sudan"], OpenNet Initiative, 7 August 2009</ref>

The government monitors Internet communications, and the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) reads [[e-mail]] messages between private citizens. The National Telecommunications Corporation blocks some Web sites and most proxy servers deemed offensive to public morality. While there generally are no restrictions on access to news and information Web sites, authorities regularly block access to [[YouTube]]. During the June and July 2012 antigovernment demonstrations, authorities blocked access to several popular online discussion forums. Security agencies also arrested several [[bloggers]] during this period, and commentators speculated the government used [[social media]] to track and arrest protesters.<ref name=USDOS-CRHRP-Sudan-2012>[https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/humanrightsreport/index.htm?year=2012&dlid=204171 "Sudan"], ''Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2012'', Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, U.S. Department of State, 2 April 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2014.</ref>

The interim national constitution provides for [[freedom of thought]], [[freedom of expression|expression]], and of [[freedom of the press|the press]] “as regulated by law”; however, the government severely restricts these rights. Individuals who criticize the government publicly or privately are subject to reprisal, including arrest. Journalists are subjected to arrest, harassment, intimidation, and violence due to their reporting. The government, including NISS, practices direct prepublication [[censorship]] of all forms of media. Journalists also practice [[self-censorship]]. NISS resorts to legal action against journalists, bringing [[libel]] lawsuits for stories critical of the government and security services. The Supreme Court in December 2011 overturned a lower court decision against several of the accused journalists, but NISS petitioned for a review of the higher court's decision. The Supreme Court rejected the NISS appeal in September 2012, but the security service continued to pursue defamation cases against several other journalists. The interim national constitution and law prohibit arbitrary interference with privacy, family, home, or correspondence, but the government routinely violates these rights. Emergency laws in Darfur and Blue Nile states legalize interference in privacy, family, home, and correspondence. Security forces frequently conduct searches without warrants and target persons suspected of political crimes. The government monitors private communication and movement of individuals without due legal process.<ref name=USDOS-CRHRP-Sudan-2012/>

In 2019, Internet services were blocked in Sudan from June 3 to July 7.<ref name="aawsat.com"/>