When it comes to controlling the flow of information in Turkmenistan, authorities don’t mess around. Those caught trying to evade government censorship measures to communicate with the outside world can potentially be criminally prosecuted as spies, according to media reports.

Currently, Turkmen security services are trying to contain a work-around found by citizens to gain open access to the Internet, according to a report published by the Uzbek news outlet Podrobno.uz. Turkmen citizens living in northern and eastern areas bordering Uzbekistan have taken to buying Uzbek SIM cards on a burgeoning black market to evade the Turkmen government’s smothering censorship, which has effectively cut the country off from the World Wide Web.

Shuttle traders and other frequent cross-border travellers are smuggling Uzbek SIM cards en masse. The cards enable Turkmen cell users to evade the controls imposed by Altyn Asyr, the country’s only cellphone operator. According to Podrobno, which cites reporting by RFE/RL’s Radio Ozodlik, the cost can reach $450, an enormous sum for the average Turkmen citizen, to browse the web at will.

Turkmen authorities have conducted raids on suspected sales points and are conducting spot inspections of individuals’ phones in an effort to keep a tight lid on knowledge. Podrobno quoted a “source” saying anyone discovered communicating with foreigners could quickly find themselves in deep trouble.

“If it is discovered that [an individual] has contacted any foreign organisations or received any assistance from them using Uzbek SIM cards,” the source is quoted as saying, he or she faces prosecution “under the article of the Criminal Code of Turkmenistan on espionage.”

Watchdog groups such as Freedom House have labelled Turkmenistan as one of the most repressive places on earth, a country where “political rights and civil liberties are almost completely denied in practice.”

This article first appeared on Eurasianet here.