It usually happens during politically-sensitive times like elections, protests, and conflicts.

這種現象常見於政治敏感時期，如選舉、示威和衝突等。

Last year, governments shut down the Internet more frequently than in previous years, according to a digital rights group that started tracking the practice in 2011.

根據數位版權組織從2011年開始的追蹤調查顯示，去年各國政府斷網的頻率高於往年。

For instance, in India, it happened in parts of the country more than 100 times.

例如，這種情況在印度部分地區就發生了超過 100 次。

Authorities say shutdowns help stop unrest and the spread of fake news and even prevent cheating on school exams.

相關當局表示，關掉網路有助於制止動亂和假新聞的傳播，或是防止校內考試作弊。

Advocates for an open Internet say shutdowns can cripple economies and disrupt daily life all while curtailing civil rights, so here's how governments can kick you off the internet.

提倡開放網路平台的人士表示，斷網會嚴重削弱經濟並打亂日常生活，同時亦是限制人權。以下是政府把你踢出網路的做法。

Usually when you type in a URL or hit an app icon, the Domain Name System looks up that address and resolves it to a string of pre-assigned numbers.

通常你輸入網址或點開應用程式後，網域名稱系統搜索該域名並解析為一串預先製定的數字。

In under a second, you can usually connect to the server and access the site.

通常不到一秒鐘，你就可以連線至伺服器並瀏覽網站。

If the government wants to block access to a specific site, it can request the Internet Service Provider to interfere with the DNS traffic.

倘若政府想要封鎖瀏覽特定網站的權限，政府可以要求網際網路服務提供者干擾網域名稱系統（DNS）流量。

The provider can then redirect traffic so it never reaches those servers.

服務提供者可以重新定向流量使其永遠無法抵達伺服器。

This happened last year at the height of a political crisis in Venezuela when opposition leader Juan Guaido tried to seize power from President Nicolas Maduro.

這種案例發生在去年委內瑞拉政治危機高峰時期，當時反對派領導胡安瓜伊多（Juan Guaido）試圖從總統尼古拉斯馬杜洛（Nicholas Maduro）的手中奪權。

Guaido was standing with soldiers outside a military base when he began live-streaming on Twitter.

胡安站在軍事基地外在 Twitter 上開啟直播。

The moment is now.

就是現在了。

He called people to rise up against President Nicolas Maduro.

他呼籲大家站出來反抗總統尼古拉斯馬杜洛。

While Guaido's call to action ricocheted across the world, at home, his message's blocked for a large number of Internet users.

在胡安的號召行動在世界各地迴盪之際，他的訊息在家鄉卻遭到封鎖。

This chart shows that Venezuela's state-run Internet provider restricted access to social media.

這個圖表顯示委內瑞拉國營的網路服務供應商於這段時間限制大眾登錄社交媒體。

The company didn't respond to a request for comment.

該公司沒有針對問題正面回應。

We're looking at something similar to radio censorship or TV censorship when authorities might bleep out parts of a sentence or a speech.

我們這裡討論的是類似廣播或電視節目的審查制度的行為，相關當局可能會將部分句子或言論消音。

Alp Toker is the founder of an Internet advocacy group called NetBlocks.

Alp Toker 是網路倡導組織 NetBlocks 的創辦人。

He says it's surprisingly easy for the government to turn off access to specific sites.

他表示，令人意外的是，政府關閉特定網站的瀏覽權限是輕而易舉的事情。

This is basically an engineer with a button on the switch.

基本上是一名工程師，操作按鈕上的開關。

When they see something they don't like, they press the button.

當他們看到不喜歡的內容，就會按下那個按鈕。

But authorities can be more subtle in how they control the Internet, not just by blocking sites, but by simply slowing down the connection.

可是相關當局可以在不知不覺中控制網路的使用，不只是封鎖網站，也可以單純地降低網速。

This is called throttling, so it looks like your apps are still running when, in fact, the interference is at a level that makes using the internet painful, so the video you're trying to watch on YouTube becomes very low-res or it keeps loading.

這稱為「節流」，應用程式似乎能正常使用，但其實這個干擾的程度會令網路使用者很痛苦，所以你試圖觀賞的 YouTube 影片解析度會非常低或是一直顯示載入中。

We spoke to network engineers who monitor Internet censorship, and they say that it's even hard for them to really pinpoint the specific reason behind a slow connection, and they say that's likely why some governments have turned to throttling to shrug off accountability.

我們訪問了負責監控網際網路的網路工程師，他們指出他們亦難以精確描述網速減低的明確原因，更表示有的政府用節流當藉口以擺脫責任。

In some extreme cases, governments can order service providers to turn off the Internet completely.

在某些極端的情況，政府可以向服務提供商下令要求完全關閉網際網路。

This happened last year during anti-government protests in Iraq when the Internet was cut off.

去年伊拉克的反政府示威活動中就曾出現這種狀況。

You connect the WiFi and opened the browser, there is nothing and the provider sent us messages we are sorry because the government cut off the internet.

你可以連上 WiFi 並打開瀏覽器，頁面上不會出現任何東西，服務供應商傳了訊息表示，很抱歉但因為政府已斷網。

Ameer Hazim is an Iraqi photographer in Baghdad, and he's been posting his photos on Instagram.

Ameer Hazim 是一名住在巴格達的伊拉克攝影師，他常常都會上傳照片至 Instagram。

The Iraqi Prime Minister at the time said it's the government's right to restrict access when the Internet is being used to stoke violence and conspiracy against the homeland.

當時的伊拉克總理表示，當網站被用來煽動暴力或反國的陰謀論時，政府有權力限制網站權限。

Because Internet blackouts disrupt critical services and can hurt the economy, authorities often target specific networks and geographic areas.

由於網路封鎖會擾亂國家重要的服務並危害經濟發展，相關當局通常是針對特定地區和網站進行封鎖。

At the height of the protests in Iraq, the government imposed daily digital curfews between 5 p.m. to 7 a.m.

在伊拉克示威活動的高峰期，政府每天下午 5 點至隔天早上 7 點實施數位宵禁。

Then during business hours, the government ordered service providers to turn on the connection again.

然後在辦公時間，政府會要求網路服務供應商重新打開網路。

We spoke to private companies in several countries, and they say they have little power to refuse a request because authorities can threaten to terminate their licenses.

我們曾訪問幾個國家的私營企業，他們表示沒有什麼權力拒絕，因為政府可能會威脅終止他們的牌照。

Citizens have looked for workarounds like using VPNs that connect to networks outside of the country.

人民找了一些替代方案，像是透過 VPN 連接國外的網路。

Some will pay for expensive satellite connections.

甚至有的人會支付高昂的費用使用衛星上網服務。

Others, like Hazim, have bought international SIM cards from Jordan that are activated before entering Iraq.

而有的會像 Hazim 一樣，在約旦購買一張國際電話卡，並在入境伊拉克前完成開通。

That helped us to keep people updated.

這樣我們才能一直為大家更新狀況。

I start doing lives from Tahrir Square showing the area around and what's happening really and how people are living and how the government are using violence.

我開始在解放廣場 (Tahrir Square) 直播這附近的狀況以及發生的事，還有人們的生活方式和政府的暴力行為。

Toker says these solutions may end up encouraging more aggressive moves from the government.

Toker 表示這些替代方法最終可能會促使政府採取更激進的應對手段。

The more people attempt to get around it, the more governments are gonna try to switch it off.

越是有人想要規避政策，政府越是想要把網路關閉。

The UN says restrictions on Internet access are a violation of human rights, but many countries already have laws that make it legal to shut down the Internet on grounds related to national security or stopping the spread of fake news.

聯合國稱限制使用網路是違反人權，可是有不少國家已經立法可以以國家安全為理由關閉網路或阻止假新聞的散播。

So while this might have started off as authoritarian dictatorship move, it gets encoded into laws.

所以雖然這個起初是獨裁的舉措，現在已編入法律。

It becomes very difficult for the public to complain about it.

民眾申訴會變得非常困難。