TURKEY’S Telecommunications Directorate (TİB) has been granted the authority to monitor Internet users and block websites and their content without court permission.

According to a new proposal made by the ruling party late September 8, and reported in the Hurriyet, it allows the head of TİB to block websites and content in order to “protect national security and public order, as well as to prevent crime.”

The service provider will be required to shut down the website or remove the content within four hours, if the omnibus bill is approved. 

The government changed the Internet Law in early 2014 after a social media campaign targeted government members over corruption claims.

The voice recordings of a number of Turkish officials allegedly showing them accepting bribes, including former Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, shook Turkish politics, with the government banning the social media websites Twitter and YouTube in a bid to stem the leaks. 

While the blocks on those websites have been lifted, the current changes to the Internet Law through the omnibus bill are regarded as further measures to monitor web users and the sites they visit. 

According to current regulations related to blocking websites, after issuing service providers with an initial order to block access to a site, the TİB must apply to court within 24 hours to get a legal decision. The latter has 48 hours to respond to the TİB’s request.

The EU and the US have severely criticized the Turkish government for increasing government control over the Internet, particularly after the blocks on Twitter and YouTube were imposed.