Key Insights

• Throughout the world, including regions like Central Asia, internet access is reaching record highs, however, this does not necessarily correlate with freedom of expression and digital anonymity.
• Under 2026 legislation, Kazakhstan now requires biometric registration (facial scanning) for all cellular phone subscribers, making verified identity a precondition for mobile and internet access.
• A potential new law in Kazakhstan seeks to restrict social media to individuals aged 16 and older, and would require SIM card registration for those under 14 as a primary step for access control and content monitoring.
• Kazakhstan’s 2025 law ‘On the Prevention of Offences’ provides a legal basis for monitoring “anti-social behaviour” in digital spaces, extending oversight beyond traditional criminal activity to include social and moral standards.
• Kazakhstan’s Financial Monitoring Agency issued proposed rules that would establish a social media monitoring system to identify and restrict unlawful online content, which includes “anti-social behaviour”, and flag it to regulators for immediate blocking or administrative action.

Introduction

17 May marks the United Nations’ World Telecommunication & Information Society Day (WTISD). A day that recognises the growing importance of digital technologies and commemorates the founding of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), when the first International Telegraph Convention was signed. The theme of this year’s WTISD is: ‘Digital Lifelines: Strengthening Resilience in a Connected World’, which emphasises the importance of digital resilience – the ability of digital systems to withstand and recover from threats and shocks.

Access and reliability of the internet to threats is absolutely critical in today’s growing digital environment, however, does access necessarily correlate to citizens’ ability to speak freely upon accessing the internet? In other words, does freedom of access coincide with freedom of expression? Or is growing access to the internet becoming a means for States to track and control their citizens? Let’s take a dive into Central Asia to see how this translates.

Open Pipes, Closed Voices

Cloudwards, an independent research and digital rights monitor, recently published its 2026 Internet Freedom Index, which ranks countries based on state-enforced censorship and access to an open web. No country ever receives a perfect score. Tajikistan was ranked the highest for digital freedom in Central Asia, with a score of 56.^[1] Kyrgyzstan ranked 52, the same score as the United Kingdom, while Kazakhstan received a score of 36, Uzbekistan 24, and Turkmenistan 16.^[2] Turkmenistan was identified as one of nine countries with the least internet freedom in the world.^[3]

While Tajikistan ranks high in regard to internet accessibility, Freedom House, which publishes an annual report that evaluates the state of global freedom through civil liberties and political rights, ranked Tajikistan a 5/100 “Not Free” score.^[4] Freedom House identified Tajikistan as one of six countries, including Iran, Nicaragua, Russia, Belarus and Venezuela, that dropped to the lowest possible score for freedom of expression as a result of mass arrests for or prosecution of critical speech.^[5] In assessing whether individuals are “free to express their personal views on political or other sensitive topics without fear of surveillance or retribution”, Freedom House gave Tajikistan a 0/4 score.^[6]

Every Central Asian country received a “Not Free” score.^[7] Kyrgyzstan received the highest score at 26/100, followed by Kazakhstan with a 23/100 score, Uzbekistan with a 12/100 score and Turkmenistan with the lowest score of 1/100.^[8] 

This dichotomy highlights a sobering reality – while the digital ‘pipes’ may be open to speak, the legal cost of speaking out online remains extremely high. Digital networks around the world are technically more resilient and faster than ever, but the cost of a connection is the total surrender of digital anonymity.

Case Study: The Reality of Kazakhstan’s 2026 Digital Landscape

Kazakhstan’s current digital landscape provides a definitive case study, illustrating the tension between technological advancement and tightening state control.

The ITU’s Data Hub provides a digital dashboard for national internet connectivity throughout the globe. Of Kazakhstan’s 20.9 million population^[9], there is an approximately 93.4% internet penetration rate^[10] (the percentage of the population online), with 45.8% of mobile users accessing at least 5G coverage.^[11] While this is very impressive, this high level of connectivity masks a system of digital surveillance to seemingly keep tight control over the population. Kazakh authorities are known to monitor social media; users are frequently prosecuted on charges including ‘inciting social and ethnic hatred’.^[12] The country’s 2024 mass media law restricts internet users from leaving online comments anonymously, seriously restricting free expression.^[13] This restrictive environment is set to intensify due to the combination of recently enacted laws and proposed measures that further erode digital anonymity.

Following the global trend, Kazakhstan recently announced its plans to amend legislation to prevent children under the age of 16 from accessing social media, excluding the use of instant messaging services. Lawmakers stress the urgency and need for this legislation in light of the dramatic increase in cyberbullying complaints throughout the country, specifically of female students, schoolgirls and those active in public life.^[14] Officials stated that 200 cases of bullying and cyberbullying involving children had already been registered by February 2026.^[15]

While the protection of children’s mental health is certainly a cause of deep concern, the technical enforcement systems involving this ban raise serious privacy concerns for children. Education Minister, Zhuldyz Suleimenova, highlighted that the draft amendment requires SIM card registration for children under 14 as the first step towards access control, followed by monitoring content used by children under 14 to identify and potentially block illegal materials.^[16]

On the surface, this seems like a logical way to keep children safe, however, the byproduct of this is the elimination of a child’s right to privacy and freedom of expression. SIM card registration eliminates any anonymity a child has, which hinders their right to freely express themselves. For example, if a young person wants to research sensitive topics (like gender identity, or political dissent) they may be hindered from doing so in fear that the government is tracking them and will subsequently prosecute or harass them. By removing the veil of anonymity, Kazakhstan would be creating an environment where children censor themselves out of fear that their private searches will be permanently logged.

It is crucial to note that this anticipated ban does not exist in a vacuum. Since 6 January 6 2026, Kazakhstan began requiring mandatory live biometrics registration for all new cellular phone subscribers.^[17] Accordingly, only upon completing the biometric identification procedure can an individual obtain a SIM card.^[18] This law has created a system where everyone who uses a cellular phone can be identified. In other words, the Kazakh government has a list of the exact faces behind every cellular phone. Kazakh citizens must now sacrifice their anonymity as a condition to access the internet.

This infrastructure is already being expanded. In December 2025, Kazakhstan introduced the Law ‘On the Prevention of Offences,’ a piece of legislation that fundamentally redefined the state’s role in policing social behaviour.^[19] With this legislation, Kazakhstan expanded the term “unlawful” to include various problematic areas, including “antisocial behaviour”, “false information”, and “propaganda of non-traditional relations.” Particularly concerning is the definition of “anti-social behaviour” as: “the actions of [a] physical person breaking the commonly accepted standards of behaviour and morals, the rights and legitimate interests of other persons, including which, are not involving administrative or criminal liability.”^[20] For the Kazakh people, this expansion means that the state no longer just monitors for crimes, but for conformity.

This law now serves as the formal legal mandate for the state’s digital enforcement strategy. Kazakhstan recently announced plans to introduce a social media monitoring system to identify and restrict unlawful online content. The purpose behind implementing this system is to increase the effectiveness of crime prevention in the digital space.^[21] The Financial Monitoring Agency (FMA) would be responsible for monitoring open-source information, including “websites, social networks, messaging platforms, mass media outlets, and other information and communication channels.”^[22] When “criminal or administrative violations are identified and . . . materials fall under restrictions established by Kazakhstan’s legislation or by court decisions that have entered into force, the [FMA]  would notify the authorised body responsible for mass media regulation.” ^[23] Following this notification, “a decision could be made to block the relevant content.”^[24]

In sum, in conjunction with the Law ‘On the Prevention of Offences,’ the FMA would have the ability to flag social media content or messages that it deems culturally and socially non-conforming, and can share this with the Kazakh government, while the Biometric SIM law would allow the Kazakh government the ability to identify the person behind the content or message. This is especially problematic given Kazakhstan’s history of prosecuting individuals for posting critical social media posts.^[25]

Human rights experts have expressed significant concern over the increasing normalisation of surveillance technologies in everyday life across the globe. Preceding the RightsCon human rights summit on 5-8 May, United Nations experts issued a joint statement emphasising that:

“Digital surveillance tools and activities are often incompatible with international human rights obligations, foster an environment of fear, and exert profound chilling effects on the exercise of fundamental freedoms and civic space. Collectively, these developments limit the ability to express dissent and impede inclusive democratic public participation.”^[26]

Conclusion

On 17 May^, as the world celebrates the theme of “Digital Lifelines: Strengthening Resilience in a Connected World”, we must ask ourselves a critical question – for whom is this resilience being built, citizens or governments? Technical resilience without the ability to speak freely places ordinary citizens inside a digital cage. Citizens should not be forced to surrender their biometric data as a precondition of staying connected.  As countries, including those in Central Asia, increasingly strengthen the lines of digital connection for their citizens, we, as a global community, must ensure that the voices of ordinary people are not left unheard.

Policy Recommendations

For the Government of Kazakhstan:

• Repeal the mandatory biometric registration requirement for SIM card acquisition and allow mobile users to register using only a physical, government-issued photo ID (Passport or National ID) verified by a human agent, without requiring a biometric or facial scan.
• Replace the proposed social media ban for minors under 16 with an initiative that empowers families through education and device-level controls.
• Amend the 2025 Law ‘On the Prevention of Offences’ to provide precise, legally bounded definitions of “unlawful content,” striking vague terminology that currently facilitates arbitrary censorship and the targeting of marginalised groups.
• Establish a strict judicial oversight mechanism for the FMA, in its monitoring or blocking of digital content, to ensure that state intervention is limited to criminal activity rather than the policing of subjective “anti-social behaviour.”

For International Actors:

• Condition international technical loans and financial assistance for digital projects in Central Asia, particularly in Kazakhstan, on strict compliance with international human rights standards, ensuring that international development funding does not subsidise or deploy systems tied to mandatory biometric tracking or facial scanning.
• Provide legal assistance, technical resources, and advocacy platforms to local civil society organisations and independent digital rights monitors operating under restrictive conditions, enabling them to safely document digital censorship and ensure that violations of digital privacy reach international human rights treaty bodies.

[1] ‘Internet Censorship: How Does Your Country Compare?’ (Cloudwards) https://www.cloudwards.net/internet-censorship/ accessed 10 May 2026.

[2] Id.

[3] Id.

[4] Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2026 (Freedom House 2026) https://freedomhouse.org/sites/default/files/2026-03/FIW2026_final_digital%20%281%29.pdf accessed 10 May 2026.

[5] Id.

[6] Id.

[7] Id.

[8] Id.

[9] International Telecommunication Union, ‘Kazakhstan: Country Profile’ (ITU DataHub) https://datahub.itu.int/data/?e=KAZ accessed 11 May 2026.

[10] Id.

[11] DataReportal, Digital 2026: Kazakhstan (DataReportal, 12 February 2026) https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2026-kazakhstan accessed 11 May 2026.

[12] Freedom House, ‘Kazakhstan: Freedom in the World 2025’ (2025) https://freedomhouse.org/country/kazakhstan/freedom-world/2025 accessed 14 May 2026.

[13] Id.

[14] ‘Жителям Астаны напомнили, что делать в случае бытового насилия’ (Zakon.kz, 15 April 2024) https://www.zakon.kz/obshestvo/6498967-zhitelyam-astany-napomnili-chto-delat-v-sluchae-bytovogo-nasiliya.html accessed 10 May 2026.

[15] ‘Kazakhstan Proposes Restrictions on Social Media Access for Minors’ (The Times of Central Asia, 21 February 2024) https://timesca.com/kazakhstan-proposes-restrictions-on-social-media-access-for-minors/ accessed 10 May 2026.

[16] ‘Казахстанским детям готовят ограничения в соцсетях’ (Tengrinews.kz, 21 February 2024) https://tengrinews.kz/kazakhstan_news/kazahstanskim-detyam-gotovyat-ogranicheniya-sotssetyah-591222/ accessed 10 May 2026.

[17] ‘Kazakhstan Introduces Mandatory Biometric ID for Mobile Phone Subscribers’ (The Times of Central Asia, 20 February 2024) https://timesca.com/kazakhstan-introduces-mandatory-biometric-id-for-mobile-phone-subscribers/ accessed 10 May 2026.

[18] Id.

[19] ‘Kazakhstan Plans to Introduce Social Media Monitoring’ (The Times of Central Asia, 19 February 2024) https://timesca.com/kazakhstan-plans-to-introduce-social-media-monitoring/ accessed 10 May 2026; see also Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Information Security of the Member States of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS Legislation) https://cis-legislation.com/document.fwx?rgn=172402 accessed 10 May 2026.

[20] Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Information Security of the Member States of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS Legislation) https://cis-legislation.com/document.fwx?rgn=172402 accessed 10 May 2026.

[21] Kazakhstan Plans to Introduce Social Media Monitoring’ (The Times of Central Asia, 19 February 2024) https://timesca.com/kazakhstan-plans-to-introduce-social-media-monitoring/ accessed 10 May 2026.

[22] Id.

[23] Id.

[24] Id.

[25] Freedom House, Freedom on the Net 2025: Kazakhstan (Freedom House 2025) https://freedomhouse.org/country/kazakhstan/freedom-net/2025 accessed 10 May 2026.

[26] UN OHCHR, Safeguarding Human Rights and Freedoms in the System of Digital Inter-Surveillance and the Chill on Civic Space (27 April 2026) https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/statements/20260427-safeguard-hr-freed-syst-digi-inter-surv-chill-civic-space-sr-freedom-peaceful-en.pdf accessed 10 May 2026.