It is reported that during the 2023 elections, the Gabonese government announced an indefinite restriction of internet access. Additionally, French media channels were banned during this period. Following a post-election coup, internet access was restored.
In addition, the indicator "6.2.4 - 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 Gabon for the year 2023. This corresponds to "The government shut down domestic access to the Internet several times this year."

It is reported that Gabon mandates functional and accounting separation for operators with significant market power (SMP) in the telecom market.

Gabon has not appended the World Trade Organization (WTO) Telecom Reference Paper to its schedule of commitments.

It is reported that the Post and Electronic Communications Regulatory Authority (ARCEP), the executive authority for the supervision and administration of services in the telecommunications sector, is independent from the government in the decision-making process.

Art. 19 of the Ordinance Regulating Cybersecurity and the Fight Against Cybercrime mandates electronic communication network operators and information systems operators to host a copy of their connection and traffic data in the national territory.

Art. 12 of the Ordinance Regulating Cybersecurity and the Fight Against Cybercrime requires electronic communications network operators to have an operational management centre for their infrastructures in the national territory.

Art. 47 of Chapter IV of the Data Protection Law prohibits collecting or processing sensitive data (that is, data which reveal racial or ethnic origins, political, philosophical, or religious opinions or trade union membership of data subjects, or which relate to their health or sex life) barring certain exceptions, such as under explicit consent of the data subject as guided by the law, and when it serves the purposes of preservation of life.

According to Art. 94 of the Data Protection Law, the transfer of personal data to another country is prohibited unless the destination country ensures an adequate level of privacy protection and protection of fundamental rights and freedoms of individuals with regard to the processing operation. Determination of adequacy is a prerogative of the Gabon Data Protection Authority (the Commission Nationale pour la Protection des Données à Caractère Personnel (CNPDCP)), taking into consideration the following factors:
-the legal provisions existing in the country in question;
-the security measures enforced;
-the specific circumstances of the processing (such as the purpose and duration thereof); and
-the nature, origin, and destination of the data.
As an alternative to the 'adequacy' criteria, data controllers may transfer data if the data subject has consented expressly to its transfer; the transfer is necessary to save that person's life; the transfer is necessary to safeguard public interest; the transfer is necessary to ensure the right of defence in a court of law; or the transfer is necessary for the performance of a contract between the data subject and the data controller, at the request of the data subject, or for the performance of a contract between the data controller and a third party in the interest of the data subject (Art. 95).

Gabon has not joined any free trade agreement committing to open transfers of cross-border data flows.

Personal data protection is regulated under the Data Protection Law No. 001/2011.

Art. 12 of the Ordinance regulating Cybersecurity and the Fight Against Cybercrime requires network operators and electronic communication service providers to keep the connection and traffic data in their facilities for a period of ten years. The same requirement applies to information systems operators as per Art. 16. This is despite the sub-regional legislation of CEMAC to which Gabon belongs, which provides for a maximum period of two years during which the States can allow operators to keep traffic data for security reasons.

A basic legal framework on intermediary liability for copyright infringement is absent in Gabon's law and jurisprudence.

A basic legal framework on intermediary liability beyond copyright infringement is absent in Gabon's law and jurisprudence.

It is reported that Gabon imposes an identity requirement for SIM registration. Anyone wanting to purchase a SIM card has to provide their national ID card or a passport in case of foreigners to activate a new prepaid SIM card.

Arts. 12 and 16 of the Ordinance Regulating Cybersecurity and the Fight Against Cybercrime require network operators, electronic communication service providers and information system operators to install data traffic monitoring mechanisms in their networks. This data can be accessible during judicial investigations.