Kian Vesteinsson

Kian is senior research analyst for technology and democracy. He manages research and writes for Freedom on the Net, Freedom House’s annual assessment of internet freedom, and previously covered Asia and sub-Saharan Africa for the publication. Kian also contributes to Election Watch for the Digital Age and serves as an expert on free expression, privacy, and information integrity in publications and events. 

Before joining Freedom House, Kian was senior law and tech policy officer at Human Rights Watch, where he staffed the office of the general counsel and contributed to research and advocacy on human rights and technology around the world, focusing on surveillance in the United States. Previously, he worked on digital privacy, police technology, and national security surveillance at the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. Kian holds a B.A. in Politics and Religious Studies from Pomona College.

Featured Reports

Freedom on the Net

Freedom on the Net 2024: The Struggle for Trust Online (co-author)

Freedom on the Net 2023: The Repressive Power of Artificial Intelligence (co-author)

Freedom on the Net 2022: Countering an Authoritarian Overhaul of the Internet (co-author)

Freedom on the Net 2021: The Global Drive to Control Big Tech

Selected Publications and Events

• Foreign Interference and Decentralized Resilience in Taiwan in "Adaptation and Innovation: The Civic Space Response to AI-Infused Elections," Center for Democracy and Technology (2025)
• Keynote address and panelist, "Here's to Internet Freedom" at the Tallinn Digital Summit (2024)
• Panelist, "Foreign Influence Operations and American Elections: Risks and Responses," Reagan Institute (2024)
• Delegitimizing the Messenger: the Assault on Fact-Checkers in Net Politics, Council on Foreign Relations (2024)
• AI Chatbots Are Learning to Spout Authoritarian Propaganda in WIRED (2023)
• Keynote address to the National Election Session of the Cambodia Commission of Inquiry (2023) 
• Chinese Protesters and the Global Internet Need Each Other in the Diplomat (2023)
• Southeast Asia’s Leaders Should Work Toward a Freer Internet in Just Security (2022)
• What Twitter's lawsuit against the Indian government could mean for global free expression in the Los Angeles Times (2022)
• Der Traum von freden Netz ("The Dream of a Free Internet") in Kulturaustausch (2022)
• Zambia’s ‘New Dawn’ should extend to digital rights in the Daily Maverick (2021)
• Nigeria's Twitter Ban is a Bellwether Case for Internet Freedom in Just Security (2021)