National security as a tool to limit press freedom

illustration: DALL-E

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The authors show how states treat a free press as a deadly threat instead of protecting it as a core foundation of democracy. Journalism is not a crime against any state. Protecting it is an urgent need for us all. Every unfair criminal case against an ordinary journalist permanently damages the ability of citizens to understand the world around them.

Expanding definition of threats

State authorities willingly use words like spies, traitors, and common terrorists in their propaganda. They equate reporters with opposition groups or dangerous geopolitical enemies in this subtle way. Democracies do not lag behind in this trend. They also misuse state secret laws to suppress uncomfortable facts.


The document from Reporters Without Borders clearly proves that war and political instability create fertile ground for public fear. This gives governments a convenient excuse to increase control over independent media.

The case of Julian Assange remains the most prominent example of such actions. The United States pursued the WikiLeaks founder for fourteen years to bring him before an American court. The US government argued that he conspired to obtain secret military information, though it never proved this in court.

Fact from Julian Assange`s case	Numerical value
Number of published secret documents	250 000
Potential sentence in years of imprisonment	175
Number of charges against the journalist	18
Days spent in harsh Belmarsh prison	1 901
Final sentence in months	62

Figures in the table show the massive pressure exerted by a powerful state on an independent publisher. Assange left London prison on June 25, 2024, after pleading guilty to one charge, and moved to Australia. Reporters Without Borders had long called for a quick resolution to this situation. The team also runs a specialized lab that studies daily digital threats to investigative journalists. The Digital Security Lab helps newsrooms in concrete ways every day.

• It inspects physical devices for traces of compromise or hidden spyware.
• It analyzes dangerous phishing attempts and harmful online communication.
• It investigates suspicious account takeovers and unauthorized system access.
• It documents digital attacks to support efforts for legal accountability.

Lab actions save professional equipment and valuable data for many editors worldwide. Cyberattacks using advanced software exploit unknown security flaws. Journalist smartphones contain sensitive information, including private talks with confidential sources.

New laws and censorship in practice

The report "National security as A weapon against Journalism" details the hard situation in Cuba. The entry into force of a new social communication law in 2024 increased pressure on independent media. Police officers question journalists under fake charges of government propaganda and mercenary work. Authorities present independent articles as deliberate attempts to destabilize the socialist system. The Cuban legal system has banned private media since 1959.

Similar legal mechanisms operate in Tunisia. State Decree number 54 from 2022 bypasses the goal of fighting cybercrime. The law violates basic terms of the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime. Vague rules give authorities broad powers and threaten secret informants. Tunisian police often detain journalists under false pretexts of spreading fake news.

Digital surveillance of society

The military junta in Myanmar went a step further in its actions. In January 2025, military rulers adopted a new law on cybersecurity. Officially, these rules protect state sovereignty and ensure stability. However, the report from Reporters Without Borders shows that the rules give authorities huge powers to censor the internet.

Country introducing changes	Year of new law	Main charge against free media
Cuba	2024	Propaganda against government policy
Tunisia	2022	Spreading fake news
Myanmar	2025	Distributing improper information

In Myanmar, new rules ban citizens from using VPNs to bypass state blocks. Distributing improper information carries high fines or long prison terms. The reach of this law extends to citizens living abroad. Western tech experts call this model a classic Chinese variant. The system prioritizes state control over digital privacy.

Software company Geedge Networks supplies the junta with tools for deep surveillance. These tools allow state services to monitor user network traffic in real time. The company previously built systems for the Great Firewall of China.

The authors call on democratic governments to adopt a narrow definition of real threats. Politicians must avoid vague terms in laws, such as harm to state interests, to protect free journalism.

The full report "National security as A weapon against Journalism" is available for free on the Reporters Without Borders website.