In 2021 Hashtag Generation commenced the Greater Internet Freedom (GIF) consortium with the support of Internews – USAID and Engage Media, a three year initiative to achieve the aims of enhancing digital security for civil society and media organizations, engaging citizens in internet governance debates, and advancing human rights online. The first year of the timely project consisted of initiatives to strengthen digital security and internet freedoms in Sri Lanka targeting the general public, particularly young girls and women, civil society organizations working on matters pertaining to the freedom of expression and online privacy and activists/human rights defenders using digital platforms for connectivity and activism.

As part of the project, Hashtag Generation also carried out research in order to identify the gaps and needs related to digital safety capacity among human rights defenders and at-risk communities, understand internet freedom contexts and issues and identify weaknesses in public policies of telecommunications companies related to freedom of expression and privacy. 

A report featuring the findings titled “Through The Looking Glass: Digital Safety and Internet Freedom in South and Southeast Asia” looking into the current digital safety and internet freedom challenges and potential interventions or solutions in Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Indonesia, the Maldives, Nepal, and the Philippines was published. It was launched at RightsCon, the world’s leading summit on human rights in the digital age, in June 2022. The second phase of the project will kick off shortly.