Decree No. 20-332 stipulates that online media directors must notify the authorities of any "illegal content" published on their platforms. Art. 13 establishes that "the director in charge of the online information organ is required to take the appropriate measures and means to fight against illicit contents (...) especially any content including incitement to hatred, violence or discrimination because of the regional origin, of an alleged race, religion or political or ideological opinion or gender. The director responsible for the online news organisation must notify the relevant authorities of any illegal content."

Art. 68 of Law No. 23-20 on the Audiovisual Activity establishes that operators of digital platforms distributing audiovisual communication services are fully responsible for all content disseminated through online audiovisual service distribution platforms. In addition, Art. 32 requires that these digital audiovisual services refrain from broadcasting any material that incites violence, terrorism, racial discrimination, or conveys false information.

It was reported that in 2022, for the sixth consecutive year, the Algerian government restricted access to social media platforms—including Facebook and X—from 12 to 16 June during nationwide high school examinations. In 2023, similar measures were taken between 11 and 15 June, with internet service providers instructed to block various websites, including social media and messaging platforms. Once again, Facebook and X were among the affected services. Reports from 2024 indicate that the government repeated these actions from 9 to 13 June, ordering the blocking of social media and messaging sites during the exam period.

Reports indicate that, over the past eight years, Algerian authorities have imposed nationwide internet shutdowns to "prevent cheating" during national baccalaureate exams. Most recently, in June 2024, the government reportedly cut off internet access across the entire country for four days during the high school examination period. In addition, the indicator "7.2.4 - Government Internet shut down in practice" of the V-Dem Dataset, which measures whether the government has the technical capacity to actively make internet service cease, thus interrupting domestic access to the internet or whether the government has decided to do so, has a score of 2 in Algeria for the year 2024. This corresponds to "The government shut down domestic access to the Internet several times this year."

According to Arts. 7-8 of Law No. 18-05, any e-commerce activity, which is defined as electronic commerce of goods and services, is subject to registration in the commercial register or in the register of arts and crafts, and to the publication of a website hosted in Algeria with extension ".com.dz". In addition, Art. 9 requires that the exercise of the e-commerce activity be subject to the registration of the domain name with the services of the National Center of the Commercial Register. This requirement applies to both domestic and foreign e-providers, as stated in Art. 2 of the law, stipulating that the legislation applies to e-commerce transactions when one of the parties to the e-commerce contract is of Algerian nationality, is legally resident in Algeria, is a legal person under Algerian law, or if the contract is concluded or performed in Algeria.

Art. 10 of Decision No. 48/SP/PC/ARPT/17 stipulates that in the course of carrying out the activity covered by its authorisation to establish and operate hosting and storage services for computerised content, the service provider is obliged to establish its infrastructure on national territory and guarantee that it is set up using equipment incorporating the most recent and proven technologies. In addition, the service provider is required to provide services via infrastructures specifically declared for this authorisation. The term "service provider" is defined as any natural or legal person who has been granted authorisation to establish and operate hosting and storage services for computerised content for the benefit of remote users as part of cloud computing services, in compliance with the requirements set out in the legislation and regulations in force.

Art. 6 of Decision No. 48/SP/PC/ARPT/17 provides that any natural or legal person wishing to establish and/or operate a service for the hosting and storage of computerised content for the benefit of remote users, within the framework of so-called cloud computing services, shall submit an application to the Regulatory Authority. Any legal entity wishing to establish and/or operate such a service must be incorporated under Algerian law and have its registered office in Algeria.

It is reported that digital piracy is pervasive and that enforcement mechanisms lack transparency and consistency, particularly with regard to online platforms and Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) piracy.

Algeria has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

Algeria has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

Algeria does not have a comprehensive framework in place that provides effective protection of trade secrets, but there are limited measures addressing some issues related to trade secrets in Art. 59 of Order No. 03-07 related to patents of invention, which provides that the competent judicial authority shall take into consideration the legal interests of the defendant when approving any required evidence through non-disclosure of commercial and industrial secrets.

It is reported that Algeria imposes a requirement for the sharing of passive infrastructure in order to facilitate the provision of telecommunications services to end-users. This practice is observed in both the mobile and fixed sectors.

Algeria is home to three mobile phone and data network operators, namely Djezzy, Algérie Télécom Mobile, and Wataniya Telecom Algérie. The largest of these by subscriptions is Optimum Télécom Algérie, which operates under the brand name of Djezzy, which became fully state-owned in August 2022 after Veon sold its 45.5% stake in Djezzy to the government-controlled Algerian National Investment Fund (Fonds National d'Investissement, FNI). The fixed incumbent, Algérie Télécom Mobile, is also fully state-owned.

It is reported that the State of Algeria has not established functional separation for the operator with significant market power. Yet, Art. 110 and 123 of Law No. 18-04 (Loi No. 18-04 du 24 Chaâbane 1439 correspondant au 10 mai 2018 fixant les règles générales relatives à la poste et aux communications électroniques) provide for accounting separation for operators with significant market power.

It is reported that, prior to 2018, the State-owned operator Algérie Télécom (AT) was the sole player in the fixed-line segment. It held a monopoly over the country’s fixed-line and fibre optic networks and was responsible for developing Algeria’s telecommunication sector. In 2018, Law No. 18-04 required the incumbent operator to respond to requests for unbundling of its local loop made by the service operators of electronic communications holding general authorisations in consideration of compensation (Arts. 102 and 126). However, pursuant to Art. 126, international traffic originating in or destined for electronic communications networks open to the public other than satellite must be transported in full through the international infrastructure established or operated by AT. The telecom licensing requirements are stipulated in Arts. 123 and 124 of Law No. 18-04.