Human Rights Defenders and Digital Space
Author(s): UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders
Date: 2026
Topics: Attacks on Defenders
On 31 March 2026, the Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders published a scoping paper examining how social media platforms contribute, intentionally or otherwise, to silencing & endangering human rights defenders.
In the paper, based on submissions from civil society organisations, the Special Rapporteur found that through at best faulty moderation practices, algorithmic suppression, inadequate responses to online harassment and compliance with repressive demands from States, social media platforms contribute, intentionally or otherwise, to silencing and endangering human rights defenders.