The right to freedom of expression, as one of the fundamental human rights, provides an opportunity for the free development of individuals. Besides, it is a prerequisite for the exercise of other rights and a guarantee of the existence of a democratic society. In the process of social development, this right finds expression in other spheres of life, including the Internet. This necessitates a qualitatively different regulation of the exercise of this right, the emergence of new mechanisms.

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... r the last two decades, this issue has been debated at the international level, resulting in the creation of a number of international instruments. Still no comprehensive document governing the exercise of the right to freedom of expression on the Internet has been created. In Ukraine the right to freedom of expression is enshrined at the constitutional level. Yet it is believed that there is some inconsistency between the provisions of the Constitution of Ukraine that impose restrictions on the right to freedom of expression and the relevant provisions of international legal acts. There are several legislative acts that govern the exercise of this right in the context of the Internet. However, the problems that arise in practice indicate that the existing legal framework does not suffice. The main problems in the exercise of the right to freedom of expression on the Internet are the excessive restriction and filtering of content. It is also confirmed by a number of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights on this issue. In Ukraine, there are specific examples of restrictions on this right -blocking Russian websites, the shutdown of the file-sharing site EX.ua, «business verification», etc. Research by international organizations shows that Ukraine lacks Internet freedom. Registered legislative initiatives carry a number of threats and do not meet international standards. The problem of exercising the right to freedom of expression Abstract | УДК 341.231.14