Iraq's Ministry of Communications has blocked access to IMDb on November 26, the world's largest movie and television database website, citing concerns over “immoral content.”

IMDb, or the Internet Movie Database, is one of the world's most visited entertainment websites with over 200mn monthly users. Founded in 1990 and owned by Amazon since 1998, the website serves as the entertainment industry's standard database for movies, TV shows and celebrity information, including ratings, reviews, cast lists and production details.

The ministry said the decision was made following continuous monitoring by Al-Salam General Company, a government body responsible for website inspection and blocking, Al-Mirbad reported.

“The blocking decision was not arbitrary, contrary to what some have claimed,” the ministry statement said.

“It was implemented after sustained monitoring revealed content that includes pornographic films and unethical pages,” it added.

The ministry stressed that the action was taken to protect Iraqi social fabric and cultural values, though it did not specify which content on the mainstream movie database site had triggered the ban.

IMDb, which shows trailers for movies and reviews, has no Arabic language service and is only available in the European languages as well as Hindi.

According to the State of the Net Freedom House report, Iraq's internet freedom deteriorated significantly over the past year, marked by increased website blocking, longer prison sentences for online content, and frequent service disruptions, according to a new report covering June 2023 to May 2024.

The country implemented 66 internet outages in 2023 – more than any other nation globally – with most occurring during academic examinations to prevent cheating. These shutdowns cost the Iraqi economy an estimated $1.4mn per day, according to digital rights group SMEX.

Iraq’s Al-Sudani-led administration has increasingly acted stringently on grasping power in recent months, with lockdowns enforced for the census over the past week, stricter monitoring of its several regions and previous moves to switch the country’s internet off during school exam periods.

The census, ordered by Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani's Baghdad government, aimed to provide a clear picture of Iraq's population distribution after years of war, invasion and occupation by the US and so-called Islamic State, particularly in the north of the country.

Despite reaching 78.7% internet penetration with approximately 36.22mn users as of January 2024, Iraq continues to struggle with infrastructure challenges.

Also, internet costs remain among the region's highest, with average monthly fixed-line broadband packages costing $36.14 despite relatively slow speeds. The situation is particularly acute in rural areas, where some regions still rely on 2G technology.

This IMDb move marks another step in Iraq's increasing online content regulation, following neighbouring Iran and Saudi Arabia with their strict access to certain websites.