However, there are countries that do not let their citizens get access to the internet. Worse still are countries where the internet is available to users but is so heavily censored and regulated that it is pointless. Here are some of the worst countries for internet usage, or conversely, top countries where you must use VPN:
- China
Everyone knows about the Great Wall of China, and everyone also knows about the Great Firewall of China. The Communist Party of China strictly regulates the content available on the internet in China and monitors the internet activity of users. Social media and search engines like Google are blocked, and China is the worst country when it comes to imprisonment of journalists. Millions of people use the internet in China and their only means to anything resembling to free internet access is to use VPN.
- North Korea
Kim Jong-un and his followers have such a strong hold on communication and media in North Korea that only a few people have access to internet, the few people being elite politicians. Other than that, some schools and institutions have access to a heavily regulated intranet.
- Eritrea
This African country is another country that censors the internet heavily. Access to the internet is anyways available only to 1 percent of the population and that too with dial-up connections. On top of all this, the internet usage is severely restricted, thus making VPN usage absolutely vital.
- Saudi Arabia
Almost all countries in the middle-east censor the internet to a great extent, but Saudi Arabia easily tops the lot. In a shakedown in 2014, many journalists were imprisoned for sharing content online that was against the best interests of the nation.
- Vietnam
Vietnam is another country where internet access, although available widely, does not bear freedom since the government censors a great deal of it. Many online journalists and bloggers are closely followed by the government and barred from attending events to prevent them from sharing its details. Apart from this, they also, of course, monitor people’s activity on the internet.
- Pakistan
Pakistan nationals have access to the internet, but it is quite restricted. Popular social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter are banned, and other services like YouTube, too, are not available for public usage. Monitoring of internet activity is in place as well.
- USA
All the other countries in this list restrict what is available on the internet, but USA is different in this respect. However, the heavy monitoring of people’s activity on the internet and building detailed personal profiles from the data accumulated from the monitoring is astounding for a country that is a superpower. Details about the NSA’s censorship programs brought people face to face with the reality that all their telephonic as well as online communications are monitored by the government.