The Bengal delta is the largest in the world and covers most of Bangladesh, this being one of the contributing factors to the natural landscape that dominates the country. But Bangladesh is also the world’s eighth most populous country and, like many others, is undergoing a phase of great development in different sectors, including with its cyber space since more and more Bangladeshi have access to high-speed internet.
However, the Asian country is ranked as ‘partly free’ by Freedom House due to content filtering, obstacles to access such as app blocking, complete internet shutdowns, and more. Therefore, VPNs are more of a necessity than a choice for Bangladeshi, who thankfully don’t have to break any laws to use one since they are legal in the country.
In 2011 only 5% of people in Bangladesh had access to the internet but the country has been able to follow the same pattern of internet growth as many other countries in the world. In recent years it has boosted the overall internet penetration, even though the numbers from international sources and those belonging to the government differ quite a lot. For instance, while the UN’s International Telecommunication Union estimated internet penetration at 18% in 2016, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission reported it at close to 50%. What both parties agree on, however, is that nine out of ten people are connecting from mobile platforms. The widespread access to 4G was one of the biggest contributors to this, even though Speedtest.net’s global index shows that Bangladesh’s average speeds rank below 100 on mobile and close to that mark through broadband.
In terms of website blocking, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) is in the middle of a war against adult content and over 20,000 targets have already been taken down. Other general services such as Facebook and WhatsApp were also blocked previously, too, while news and political sites are often on the BTRC ‘s radar.
There are no laws addressing online privacy in Bangladesh. On the contrary, the country approved the so-called Digital Security Act 2018, which is being heavily criticized for restricting freedom of expression. Section 43 is one of the most problematic as it allows the authorities to arrest anyone they believe has broken the law by speaking out online against the government and the national symbols, spreading propaganda against Bangladesh’s Liberation War, and more. Even worse, sentences go up to 10 years and repeated infringements may result in a lifetime in prison. Consequently, organizations such as Amnesty International have urged for new laws to ensure the protection of the Bangladeshi when online.
This draft law is a setback for a country where Freedom House has stated that “internet freedom continued to improve in 2018”. Currently, the bigger fight seems to be against adult content, as there are fewer restrictions on other websites than there have been before.
In 2015, for instance, ISPs were ordered by the government to ban Facebook, Viber, and WhatsApp, which led to a complete internet shutdown for over one hour. According to the authorities this happened “by mistake”, but another blackout would occur one year later. This time it was on purpose, as 35 more websites addressing the political environment at the time were banned once the internet was available again. Religion is another sensitive topic contributing to website and service bans in Bangladesh, where 90% of the population is Muslim . In 2016, two secure messaging apps – Threema and Wickr – were temporarily blocked for claims of spreading atheism and being critical of Islam.
However, content blocking and filtering is still very much a common practice in Bangladesh, as are data and speed caps.
Despite the implementation of 4G in the country, Bangladeshi speeds are far from suitable for uninterrupted streaming, especially considering the data caps commonly implemented by ISPs. While the country may not be ready for high-quality streaming just yet, the dominant services of the industry such as Netflix or Amazon Prime Video are already available. In response, Bangladeshi telecom operators prepared themselves for this by developing their own in-house alternatives. Bioscope, for instance, is a streaming service created in 2016 by Grameenphone, the leading telecommunications provider in Bangladesh, while rival companies Banglalink and Robi have developed Banglaflix and Robi TV, respectively.
Likewise, ISPs have also created their own music streaming services, which are very popular in the country given that international apps like Spotify or Apple Music are not available. Yonder Music is the leading app of this kind and it’s free for Robi and Airtel subscribers, while rivals Banglalink Vibe and GP Music are subscription-based services delivered by the two other ISPs mentioned above. Also, GAAN is exclusively dedicated to Bangla music and Bangladeshi musicians.
First of all, please do not feel intimidated: the perhaps vulgar name of the UK-based company is intended to be a pun. HMA VPN has a mascot in the form of a donkey, and thus this little wordplay is nothing to worry about. You should rather pay attention to the fact that HMA VPN is easily one of the best VPN companies today; they offer much more than a standard package. You are also welcome to try out the free web proxy, an anonymous e-mail service and an IP:Port premium service, which is essentially a more elaborate proxy product. On top of this, you also have VPN browser extensions for Chrome and Mozilla to use. HMA VPN does all this while still maintaining decent speeds and healthy prices. These are coupled with the fact that HMA VPN remains one of few providers who still enable access to Netflix. But the most impressive thing about this organization is the number of locations provided – it is unprecedented today.
With an extensive server network spanning 105 countries, apps for all major platforms, and even extra security tools like an ad blocker, ExpressVPN delivers all you need for a private and secure online experience.
The software is easy to use across all devices, and the speed trumps many of its competitors, making it one of the fastest VPNs on the market. Android and iOS customers can make the most of a 7-day free trial with unlimited bandwidth and everyone can enjoy three months for free when opting for annual billing.
PureVPN has more than 6,000 servers worldwide with reliable, secire, and uninterrupted connections, compatibility with over 50 devices, and excellent customer service.
Prices start as low as $2.11 per month for the VPN, and those willing to pay a little more can get their hands on a password manager, file encryption, and personal privacy manager – all under the same subscription. Plus, with a 7-day free trial, 31-day money-back guarantee, add-ons, and discounts of up to 83%, it would be a mistake not to consider PureVPN as a viable option.
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