miji.beThe internet is called the "fifth domain" of modern warfare, after land, sea, air, and space. URLs and the domain name system are part of this battlefield too.
In conflicts, cyberspace also becomes a battleground. A government involved in a conflict has asked ICANN to disconnect the other country's country-code domains from the internet. ICANN did not accept the request, saying there is no mechanism for it to disconnect domains unilaterally. Some governments block foreign website URLs, restricting the information available to their citizens.
URLs are also used in wartime propaganda. Fake news sites with credible-sounding domain names are created and spread via social media. Short URLs hide destinations, so they are sometimes misused to spread propaganda.
In conflict zones, internet shutdowns are also a problem. When governments cut internet access, opening a URL no longer reaches the page. There have also been cases where governments shut down domestic internet access during protests or political upheavals. Citizens may try to get around censorship with VPNs and Tor, but if the URLs for these tools are also blocked, that route closes too.
Efforts to protect internet freedom continue. Cloudflare's Project Galileo provides free DDoS protection for human rights organizations and journalists. URLs and the domain system have also become a place where information freedom and control collide. When information is as tangled as it is during a conflict, it is safer not to open a short URL someone shared on social media right away, and to check which domain it leads to first. Making a habit of checking where an article comes from before forwarding it to others also keeps you from ending up among the people spreading fake news.