As Venezuelan activists take to the streets to demand that President Nicolas Maduro concede defeat after a disputed election, digital rights campaigners say the government is using technology to target and intimidate critics.

Officials have urged citizens to report online "threats" from protesters. Human rights expert Raisa Urribarri said pro-government social media channels that widely share images of arrests also create a "climate of terror."

“The strategy of the Maduro government… is to instill fear in the population so that they will no longer protest,” said Urribarri, an independent consultant on digital rights and professor emeritus at the University of the Andes in Venezuela.

The government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.