---
title: "Security vs. Censorship: Ukrainians Demand Transparent Rules for Combating Dangerous Online Content"
description: "Ukrainians are increasingly encountering disinformation online, but fear the fight against it turning into censorship. An Active Group poll showed: citizens are ready for tough measures but demand transparency and independent control. Trust in intelligence agencies is falling, while fear of pressure on the opposition is growing. 🇺🇦📱⚖️"
date: 2026-07-14T12:50:00.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/security-vs-censorship-ukrainians-demand-transparent-rules-for-combating-dangerous-online-content
tags: [ukraine, active-group, online-content, censorship, sbu]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Security vs. Censorship: Ukrainians Demand Transparent Rules for Combating Dangerous Online Content

![A man and a woman look worriedly at a laptop, discussing issues of internet security and censorship.](https://xab.info/media/2026/07/14/ukrainians-demand-transparent-rules-for-fighting-dangerous-online-content/ukrainians-demand-transparent-rules-for-fighting-dangerous-online-content-1.webp)

In the context of the digital war, Ukrainians are increasingly facing online threats, yet they are categorically opposed to turning the fight against them into a tool for censorship. This is evidenced by the results of a large-scale sociological study conducted in July 2026.

The company Active Group conducted a survey titled "Illegal Content on the Internet: Perception of Threats and Support for Regulation." The study, carried out using the "SunFlower Sociology" online panel, revealed a worrying trend: the majority of citizens do not feel protected from disinformation and terrorist content.

### Disinformation as the Main Threat

Statistics show that over the past year, 58% of Ukrainians have encountered disinformation on the internet. The share of those who have not encountered such content is only 23.4% — a noticeable decrease compared to May figures (14.9%).

The sense of security online also remains low. Only 37.7% of respondents feel protected from dangerous or terrorist content. Although this figure has risen compared to May (34.5%), more than half of those surveyed (56.6%) still feel vulnerable.

### Who Will Clean Up the Internet?

The question of who should identify and remove illegal content causes serious debate among Ukrainians. Intelligence agencies remain the leaders in trust: 39.7% of respondents are willing to delegate these powers to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), although this figure was higher in May — 44.3%.

Other institutions inspire significantly less trust:

    - National Commission for the Regulation of Electronic Communications — 14.8%;

    - Public organizations — 14.2%;

    - Online platforms — 13.7%;

    - National Council on Television and Radio Broadcasting — 11.8%;

    - Courts — 8.4%.

Notably, the level of uncertainty is growing: 20.9% found it difficult to answer, and 18.4% do not trust any of the listed structures.

### Fear of Pressure and Mistakes

The main concern of citizens is related to the risks of regulation. 32.2% of respondents fear the erroneous removal of legal content, and 30.4% worry that control mechanisms will be used to pressure the opposition.

In the choice between freedom and security, society is divided almost equally. 48% of Ukrainians lean towards prioritizing freedom (20.6% choose maximum freedom, 27.4% — more freedom), while 40.5% put security first.

### European Standards and Public Control

Support for content removal rules corresponding to European standards has decreased from 67.2% in May to 56.1% in July. The share of opponents has grown from 16.6% to 27.2% during this time.

Alexander Pozniy, Director of Active Group, emphasizes: Ukrainians are ready for a tougher fight against dangerous content, but not at the expense of their own rights and freedoms. Society expects maximum transparency of decisions and independent control. Only under such conditions will mechanisms to combat illegal content be able to gain a sufficient level of trust.