There was a time when activists and journalists who wanted to escape the ever-listening ear of the Cuban government had to speak in code or meet in European embassies.
The advent of the Internet and encrypted messaging services provided some respite.
But as quickly as advances in technology made it easier to communicate and report on the Cuban government, Havana found ways to disrupt and block messages.
Independent journalists in Cuba are playing a cat-and-mouse game with the government to keep their phones out of the hands of authorities. If a device is seized, authorities can mine its digital memory for so-called incriminating evidence.
In 2023, at least 210 internet restriction cases were recorded by the Cuban Institute for Freedom of Expression and Press (ICLEP).
ICLEP reports that these restrictions may include cutting off access to the internet, arbitrarily blocking access to social media, and hacking journalists’ accounts or the media websites they work for. It was revealed in the book.
Normand Hernandez, founder and executive director of Miami-based ICLEP, said intercepting phone calls and internet access is “the administration’s repeated strategy to silence independent journalists.” .
“Historically, it is well known that the Cuban state listens to and spies on any conversations it wants,” Hernandez said. “There is no such thing as a state of laws. Cubans have no way to protect themselves from rights violations.”
VOA contacted the Cuban Embassy in Madrid and the Government’s International Press Center in Havana for answers regarding ICLEP’s findings. No one responded to requests for comment.
Journalist Henry Constantine says his access to the internet was suddenly cut off. La Hora de CubaThe media site he works for began criticizing the Cuban government.
La Hora de Cuba It is published through Facebook and Instagram and is not affiliated with the Communist government. With a team of about 15 journalists, he has an audience of 46,000 to 48,000 people on social media.
Konstantin, the site’s editor, said censorship of journalists’ phone lines and internet access was aimed at suppressing free speech.
“Last November, when I started publishing reports that were highly critical of the government, internet access was cut off in Camaguey,” he said, referring to the central Cuban city where he is based.
“When I was in Havana, I could access the internet with a different number, so it was local censorship.”
Hernandez said the government controls all access to “digital expressions.”
Havana controls Cuba’s telecommunications company ETECSA, which has a monopoly on digital communications on the island.
This monopoly represents a contradiction to the Cuban government. For users, access to the network is a threat to Havana, and for authorities it is a means of control.
Hernandez said this control allows authorities to “easily shut down communications in general at important historical moments or important times for Cuban society, or when something is happening on the island that is of interest to Cuban society.” ” he said.
That seems to be the case with Constantine as well.
In 2021, he was detained for 10 days on charges of abuse of public order after reporting on demonstrations against the Cuban government and Communist Party over food shortages and medical supplies.
ICLEP has been documenting digital harassment since 2016.
The worst year was 2021, when ICLEP recorded 1,129 violations of freedom of expression. This coincided with the largest protests against the Cuban government and Communist Party since the 1959 revolution.
The Madrid-based opposition group Prisoners Defenders International said wiretapping of journalists and opposition activists had been carried out by the communist government for years.
“Until Wi-Fi was available in Cuba, activists had to speak privately, but only in European embassies and other countries united with the rebels. ” said Javier Lalonde, president of Prisoners Defenders.
“In some cases, they had expensive foreign phones to make calls into and out of Cuba, but the chances of them being tapped were low.”
Lalonde said Cuba has a system that automatically sends “sensitive words” to SMS messaging services.
When an anti-government activist types a word into a terminal, “the operator of the state telecommunications company picks it up and has access to the message within 10 minutes,” he said.
Lalonde described the SMS system as “particularly insecure in Cuba,” noting that users did not enjoy the security of private messaging until the advent of WhatsApp, Telegram and VPNs.
“Before WhatsApp, you either spoke in code or [use] slang. Without a doubt, this kind of rhetoric weakened the opposition movement and its capabilities. ”
The use of encryption services and other precautions are not always sufficient. Whenever journalists or opposition activists are arrested, their phones are confiscated and their memories analyzed by experts.
Lalonde said this means extreme care must be taken to ensure phones do not fall into the hands of government agencies or police.
“That’s why it’s important to leave your phone hidden at home, rather than leaving the house with your phone. Or, alternatively, leaving your phone with a second phone you don’t remember.” he said.
