Taliban Expands Moral Crackdown In Afghanistan From Localized Internet Shutdowns to Nationwide Shutdown

As of September 29, 2025, at 12:30 a.m., IODA data shows a complete Internet shutdown across the entire country of Afghanistan. BGP signals and Active Probing both dropped simultaneously and significantly, with Active Probing down to less than 5%. The IODA outage data, as reflected in the chart below, also aligns with a media report from TOLO News, confirming a nationwide outage across Afghanistan.

Today’s Internet shutdown is a further expansion of the mid-September 2025 Internet shutdown after Taliban authorities in Afghanistan initiated a sweeping ban on fiber optic (WiFi) Internet across multiple provinces in the Northern part of the country, citing a desire to “prevent immorality.” What began in Balkh rapidly expanded to provinces including Kunduz, Badakhshan, Baghlan, Takhar, Nangarhar, and others, including Herat province, which reportedly experienced tactical Internet shutdowns solely at night for several consecutive days.

Unlike wholesale shutdowns seen elsewhere in the world, the Taliban has so far left mobile/cellular data networks functional, though with slower performance and higher costs. The move represents one of the most aggressive efforts to curtail high-speed connectivity in Afghanistan’s recent history.

Connectivity metrics from IODA indicate sharp declines in Active Probing and BGP signals, which began around September 15, coinciding with the introduction of broadband availability in affected provinces. These drops align with public announcements of the crackdown. Meanwhile, media reports also show education and women’s connectivity have taken an especially hard hit, with girls’ online classes and remote studies disrupted. Businesses that rely on the Internet have also been hit.

Afghanistan’s Historical and Structural Internet Vulnerabilities This isn’t the first time Afghanistan’s Internet has been cut. Before 2021, Taliban-aligned actors often targeted telecom towers and fiber infrastructure during conflict. Even after the Taliban regained control, Afghanistan’s network resilience has been fragile thanks to underinvestment, security threats, and governance gaps, which have long plagued recovery efforts. Because much of the country’s broadband routing is concentrated around key fiber backbones, disabling or restricting those segments yields an outsized impact on overall connectivity. The regime’s decision suggests a willingness to trade significant portions of digital capacity in pursuit of ideological control.

About IODA
IODA monitors the Internet in near-real time to identify Internet outages affecting countries, subnational regions, and networks. Visit IODA for more information.

For members of the press covering this story, please contact Amanda Meng, Zachary Bischof, or Alberto Dainotti at ioda-info@cc.gatech.edu for comments and analysis.