Several major Italian internet providers are blocking Women on Web and Women Help Women, two trusted websites offering abortion information and support.
A new joint study by OONI, the global internet censorship watchdog, and Women on Web exposes the blocks that began in February 2026, and the techniques behind them.: Italy Blocks Reproductive Rights Websites Women on Web (WoW) and Women Help Women (WHW).
The impact is real. In 2025 alone, Women on Web responded to over 1,500 messages from people in Italy and received over 700 requests for support. Women Help Women supported roughly 1,000 more.
Abortion access across Italy remains fragmented and inconsistent. Only a handful of regions have adopted guidelines letting people access medication abortion through family planning clinics.
Access is shifting by region, and as a result, an increasing number of people have contacted Women on Web and Women Help Women to seek clarification, support, and practical information about their rights and the pathways available to access care in Italy.
Many Italian abortion seekers today do not know where to turn, receive incomplete or contradictory information, and feel they lack guidance throughout the process. This censorship does not solve anything. It only exacerbates existing problems.
Who’s blocking access? Fastweb, WindTre, Vodafone Italia, Iliad, Sky Italia, Eolo, and Intred, so far. More providers may follow.
There are still ways for pregnant people to access the website despite the block. These include:
- Switching to another internet provider, for example by using a friend’s phone.
- Changing the DNS server settings on their phone, which can now be done through an app such as Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 or through the phone’s settings using the privacy friendly Quad9 DNS service.
- Using a VPN or the TOR network.
Read the new study on the blocking of womenonweb.org and womenhelp.org in Italy: Italy Blocks Reproductive Rights Websites Women on Web (WoW) and Women Help Women (WHW)
Italy is now the 8th country to censor Women on Web.
For Media Inquiries
- Venny Ala-Siurua, Executive Director, Women on Web: venny@womenonweb.org
- Kinga Jelinska, Executive Director, Women Help Women: kinga@womenhelp.org
