There was speculation the Internet giants may have been blocked after people using the 3BB Internet service were unable to log on to them on Saturday.

Deputy permanent secretary for the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, Group Captain Somsak Kaosuwan, said blocking Google or YouTube would require a court order after an action was initiated by the National Broadcast and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), which must request compliance by major site administrators such as Google.

He said the state had no reason to shut down an Internet service such as Google, adding that the search engine and YouTube may have merely been experiencing technical difficulties.

He stressed the government’s relationship with Google had always been positive and the company had been accommodating to Thailand’s laws while being sensitive to individual rights.

Somsak asked the online community to be wary of unsubstantiated claims and asked people to report questionable information to the NBTC via its hotline 1200.