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Expanding Freedom and Democracy
Freedom on the Net 2025

Philippines

Partly Free
61
100
A Obstacles to Access 17 25
B Limits on Content 23 35
C Violations of User Rights 21 40
Last Year's Score & Status
60 100 Partly Free
Scores are based on a scale of 0 (least free) to 100 (most free). See the methodology and report acknowledgements.
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header1 Key Developments, June 1, 2024 – May 31, 2025

Internet freedom improved slightly in the Philippines as more people connected to the internet. A political feud between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte affected the online environment, particularly after Philippine authorities and Interpol, the international police organization, arrested former President Rodrigo Duterte, the vice president’s father, pursuant to an International Criminal Court warrant in March 2025.

  • Congress advanced the draft Konektadong Pinoy Act during the coverage period. The legislation would reform the country’s telecommunications regulatory procedures by repealing a requirement for telecommunications providers to obtain congressional approval to operate, streamlining telecommunications licensing, and smoothing the entry of satellite-based internet service, among other provisions. The bill became law in August 2025, after the coverage period (A4).1
  • Content manipulation surged during the Marcos-Duterte feud. Researchers identified a network of accounts that mobilized in early 2025 to defend President Marcos and undermine Sara Duterte, while pro-Duterte networks mobilized in the aftermath of the former president’s arrest (B5).2
  • The government and its supporters exerted pressure on pro-Duterte bloggers and influencers, summoning them to congressional hearings and carrying out arrests and investigations in response to their alleged dissemination of false information on social media.3 The Facebook accounts of several pro-Duterte influencers appeared to have been suspended by the platform as of early 2025 (B2, B5, and C3).4
  • People faced libel charges and prosecution for their online commentary, particularly journalists.5 Manuel Mamba, the outgoing governor of Cagayan Province, was convicted of cyberlibel in April 2025 over comments he made about Juan Ponce Enrile, now the president’s chief legal counsel, during an online radio program in 2020. Mamba faced four to six years’ imprisonment; the court handed down an indeterminate sentence, and Mamba filed an appeal (C3).6
  • No Filipino journalists were killed in retaliation for their work in 2024, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists,7 marking the first year without such deaths since 1998. However, violence and threats of violence continued to affect journalists working for digital outlets; in one case, reporter Roy Barbosa was assaulted and threatened as he covered a protest in September 2024 (C7).8

header2 Political Overview

The Philippines hosts a vibrant political landscape, and elections are free from overt restrictions. However, established political elites benefit from structural advantages, and problems including highly organized disinformation campaigns and widespread vote buying have undermined fair competition. Corruption is endemic, and anticorruption bodies struggle to uphold their mandates. Journalists and activists who are perceived as critical of the government or other powerful interests can face criminal cases and extralegal violence. Terrorist and insurgent activity continues on the southern island of Mindanao. Abuses by police and military personnel remain a concern. While the levels of violence and impunity decreased somewhat after a new administration took office in 2022, harmful practices such as “red-tagging”—the denunciation of government critics as supposed communists—have persisted.

This report has been abridged for Freedom on the Net 2025 due to ongoing budget constraints. Please consider making a donation to support future editions of this vital resource.

For additional background information, see last year’s full report.

A Obstacles to Access

A1 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Do infrastructural limitations restrict access to the internet or the speed and quality of internet connections? 5.005 6.006

Score Change: The score improved from 4 to 5 because mobile internet speeds and the internet penetration rate have increased.1

A2 1.00-3.00 pts0-3 pts
Is access to the internet prohibitively expensive or beyond the reach of certain segments of the population for geographical, social, or other reasons? 1.001 3.003
A3 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Does the government exercise technical or legal control over internet infrastructure for the purposes of restricting connectivity? 5.005 6.006
A4 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Are there legal, regulatory, or economic obstacles that restrict the diversity of service providers? 4.004 6.006
A5 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Do national regulatory bodies that oversee service providers and digital technology fail to operate in a free, fair, and independent manner? 2.002 4.004

B Limits on Content

B1 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Does the state block or filter, or compel service providers to block or filter, internet content, particularly material that is protected by international human rights standards? 4.004 6.006
B2 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Do state or nonstate actors employ legal, administrative, or other means to force publishers, content hosts, or digital platforms to delete content, particularly material that is protected by international human rights standards? 3.003 4.004
B3 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Do restrictions on the internet and digital content lack transparency, proportionality to the stated aims, or an independent appeals process? 3.003 4.004
B4 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Do online journalists, commentators, and ordinary users practice self-censorship? 2.002 4.004
B5 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Are online sources of information controlled or manipulated by the government or other powerful actors to advance a particular political interest? 1.001 4.004
B6 1.00-3.00 pts0-3 pts
Are there economic or regulatory constraints that negatively affect users’ ability to publish content online? 1.001 3.003
B7 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Does the online information landscape lack diversity and reliability? 3.003 4.004
B8 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Do conditions impede users’ ability to mobilize, form communities, and campaign, particularly on political and social issues? 6.006 6.006

C Violations of User Rights

C1 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Do the constitution or other laws fail to protect rights such as freedom of expression, access to information, and press freedom, including on the internet, and are they enforced by a judiciary that lacks independence? 3.003 6.006
C2 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Are there laws that assign criminal penalties or civil liability for online activities, particularly those that are protected under international human rights standards? 2.002 4.004
C3 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Are individuals penalized for online activities, particularly those that are protected under international human rights standards? 3.003 6.006
C4 1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
Does the government place restrictions on anonymous communication or encryption? 3.003 4.004
C5 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Does state surveillance of internet activities infringe on users’ right to privacy? 3.003 6.006
C6 1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
Does monitoring and collection of user data by service providers and other technology companies infringe on users’ right to privacy? 4.004 6.006
C7 1.00-5.00 pts0-5 pts
Are individuals subject to extralegal intimidation or physical violence by state authorities or any other actor in relation to their online activities? 2.002 5.005
C8 1.00-3.00 pts0-3 pts
Are websites, governmental and private entities, service providers, or individual users subject to widespread hacking and other forms of cyberattack? 1.001 3.003

On Philippines

See all data, scores & information on this country or territory.

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Country Facts

  • Population

    115,600,000

  • Global Freedom Score

    58 100 partly free

  • Internet Freedom Score

    61 100 partly free

  • Freedom in the World Status

    Partly Free

  • Networks Restricted

    No

  • Websites Blocked

    Yes

  • Pro-government Commentators

    Yes

  • Users Arrested

    Yes