Online safety & content laws in Cuba (2026)

Enacted in August 2021 after mass protests, Decree Law 35 obliges telecommunications providers to interrupt, suspend, or terminate service for users who publish content deemed 'fake', offensive to 'public morality', contrary to 'constitutional, social and economic precepts of the State', or inciting public disorder — with no requirement for judicial authorisation. Companion Resolutions 105, 107, and 108 govern cybersecurity and network use.

Law 162/2023 was published in Official Gazette No. 48 on 5 June 2024 and entered into force on 4 October 2024. It regulates media, community, and cyberspace spheres and contains vague content restrictions applicable to online speech. By November 2024 the government had accredited 'social communication inspectors' empowered to monitor and enforce compliance online.

ETECSA is Cuba's sole mobile telecommunications provider, fully state-owned, and serves as the primary enforcement mechanism for internet censorship. In May 2025 ETECSA imposed unprecedented caps on ordinary data plans (360 CUP per 30-day period, barely sufficient for a 6 GB package) at prices far exceeding the monthly minimum wage, further restricting practical access.

Authorities have repeatedly ordered ETECSA to block social media platforms and messaging apps during periods of civil unrest. The Freedom on the Net 2025 report noted that while major platforms were not wholesale-blocked during the 2024–25 coverage period (a marginal improvement), independent news websites remain systematically blocked, and some messaging apps showed signs of intermittent blocking.

Decree Law 35 and Decree 370 are routinely used to prosecute online expression. In January 2025, Félix Daniel Pérez Ruiz was sentenced to five years imprisonment for a Facebook post criticising the government and calling for a public demonstration. The government also banned the import of unregistered satellite-linked devices and seized many such devices in March 2025.

Cuba has no framework analogous to the EU Digital Services Act or UK Online Safety Act. There is no independent regulator, no user rights-based content-moderation regime, and no formal age-verification framework; instead, all content obligations flow downward from the Communist Party-aligned state to the monopoly ISP, with no avenue for platform challenge or user appeal.