The 2023 "Freedom on the Net" initiative was just revealed by the American nonprofit group "Freedom House". With a score of 78, Taiwan's Internet freedom placed first in the Asia-Pacific area and sixth out of 70 nations in the survey.
Taiwan is ranked first in Asia-Pacific and sixth globally in the 2023 Freedom on the Net survey.Photo reproduced from Freedom House official website
Based on the "Barriers to Accessing the Internet," "restrictions on content," and "violation of user rights" to assess the degree of Internet freedom in each nation, this Freedom House survey report examines the evolution of the Internet environment in 70 countries between June 2022 and May 2023, covering roughly 88% of Internet users worldwide. The findings are categorized as "freedom" with a score of 70 or above, "partial freedom" with a score between 70 and 40, and "not free" with a score of 40 or below on a scale of 100.
The survey noted that, with a score of 94, Iceland was among the top five nations in the world with the freest Internet access, followed by Estonia (93), Canada (88), Costa Rica (85), and the United Kingdom (79). Taiwan came in at number 78. placed sixth. Furthermore, China (9 points), Myanmar (10 points), Iran (11 points), Cuba (20 points), and Russia (21 points) are the five nations with the least amount of free Internet.
One of the most liberated Internet ecosystems in Asia is found in Taiwan, according to the survey. Additionally, Taiwan's government, IT industry, and civil society have responded creatively to counter China's misinformation. This was confirmed by Freedom House. However, it also made clear how online freedom is threatened by worries about disproportionate surveillance and criminal prosecutions of online activity.