Legislative mechanisms of control over information space in information autocracies: theoretical and legal analysis

The article presents a comprehensive analysis of legislative mechanisms for controlling the information space in states classified as informational autocracies. The phenomenon of informational autocracy is examined as a new form of authoritarian regime that does not rely solely on classical censorship but employs more flexible legal and technological instruments to manage information flows. Particular attention is given to legislative initiatives and legal norms that formally declare the protection of national security, the fight against disinformation or information terrorism, yet are simultaneously used to restrict freedom of speech, suppress opposition views, and monopolize public discourse. Legislative mechanisms of information space control are understood as a set of normative legal acts regulating citizens’ access to information, imposing restrictions on freedom of speech, applying censorship, or enabling the blocking of information resources. The paper identifies key mechanisms, including the adoption of laws on «fake news», legal regulation of social networks, creation of state registries of banned websites, mandatory user identification in the online space, and indirect tools such as financial pressure on the media, licensing requirements, and control over technical infrastructure. The study analyzes practices from specific countries that have implemented comprehensive information-legal regulations to ensure the political dominance of the ruling regime. Attention is also given to legal conflicts and inconsistencies between national laws and international human rights standards. The purpose of the article is to analyze the main legislative mechanisms ensuring the functioning of informational autocracy, to define their features, and assess their consequences for the legal status of the individual. The object of the research is the information space under an authoritarian political regime (informational autocracy) controlled by the state. The subject of the research is the legislative mechanisms for regulating and controlling the information space in informational autocracies, as well as their impact on freedom of speech, digital rights, and the legal status of the individual. The methodology includes methodological approaches (activity-based, systemic, comparative, axiological), general scientific methods of reasoning (analysis, synthesis, abstraction, generalization), philosophical methods (dialectical, metaphysical, hermeneutic, epistemological), general scientific (historical, synergetic, functional, structural), and specific legal (formal-legal, comparative-legal) methods. As a result of the study, legislative mechanisms in informational autocracies are analyzed as part of a hybrid governance model combining elements of formal democratic regulation with authoritarian practices aimed at maintaining political stability, centralizing control, and shaping a controlled information environment.