What is FATA Watch?
In the past decade the security establishment and the judiciary in Iran have been one of the primary instruments of suppression and censorship on the internet.
The FATA cyber police force has been in the news for putting pressure on civil rights activists, journalists and well-known figures, but most of its sinister online activities have gone unreported.
In recent years, Filterwatch has paid special attention to the macro policies and key components of Iran’s internet structure. We have published analytical reports to shed light on the actions taken by FATA, the judiciary and the security agencies, documenting their impact on freedom of information and privacy.
In a series of quarterly reports entitled “FATA Watch,” we collect statements issued by FATA, as well as reports from news outlets and civil society sources, to document FATA’s violations of human rights, in particular as they pertain to freedom on the Internet.
The reports illuminate how the FATA cyber police force carries out widespread arrests with backing from the judiciary and the security agencies. Despite insufficient details on these cases, we aim to gather and archive key facts pointing to the erosion of digital rights and expansion of censorship in Iran.
FATA’s limitless authority
The first quarter of 2022 was once again marked by actions carried out by FATA and other security agencies to control and suppress legitimate, peaceful online activities. However, the scope of these measures went well beyond the usual crackdown on political activities and took a sharp turn toward suppressing lifestyle choices, even family planning. Most notable incidents include the extension of digital surveillance to satirical pages on social media and enforcement of a ban on sale of contraceptives online, in accordance with Article 59 of the Youthful Population Law.
FATA’s priorities appear to be misaligned with the realities of and imminent threats to society. Despite significant growth in financial cyber crimes, such as identity theft, fraud, phishing, and crypto currency scams in Iran, 20 percent of FATA’s resources are still directed toward investigating so-called “morality crimes,” – a vague concept that underpins many cases of prosecution of online activities.
Morality crimes are authorized in the Islamic Penal Code and the Computer Crimes Law. Article 641 of the Islamic Penal Code prohibits insults, slander, threats, and humiliation, as well as digital messages containing “inappropriate” images. Article 14 of the Computer Crimes Law proscribes any use of computers and communication devices for producing, exchanging, or storing “indecent content,” in particular for the purpose of revenue generation.
The vague and broad wording of these laws has left ample room for selective interpretations of morality crimes and arbitrary measures by FATA. As this report indicates,FATA made a number of arrests for publishing immoral and indecent content on social media, citing note 5 to Article 14 of the Computer Crimes Law which defines indecent content as “any image, audio or text that reveals full male or female nudity and describes sexual acts.”
However, such content will first and foremost be a violation of the terms of use of social media networks and are often deleted before Iranian censors could even catch them. Our research suggests that FATA is, in effect, cracking down not on nudity but on small businesses that promote what is perceived by Iranian authorities as Western lifestyle. Photographers and fashion designers are often prime targets of this type of suppression.
Cases in the first quarter of 2022
January 3: The FATA police chief in Ardabil province said the admin of an Instagram account belonging to a fashion business had been arrested for “promoting modeling by publishing immoral and indecent photos.”
Also on this day, two people were arrested in Khorasan Razavi province and accused of disturbing public order with their social media posts: “The new Omicron variant has reached the gates of Mashhad at a time when we still haven’t gotten our second and third vaccine shots.” Their identities have not been revealed.
January 16: The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported the arrest of Farideh Moradkhani, the niece of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. She heads a campaign to support political prisoners. No reason has been given for her arrest and no charges have been made public yet.
However, some have speculated that her arrest might have been in connection with a video posted on October 14, 2021, showing her reading a poem on ClubHouse and Instagram to celebrate the birthday of Farah Diba, the former empress of the Pahlavi Dynasty, deposed by the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
January 17: According to the FATA police chief in Tehran province, several people were arrested for allegedly running an Instagram page containing so-called immoral images. No further information is available yet.
January 23: A man was arrested near Tehran for his video on Instagram insulting the people of northern Iran. He was forced to apologize on state television.
January 25: Rap singer Toomaj Salehi was given a suspended prison sentence for his political rap songs, human rights groups reported. According to HRANA, the Revolutionary Court in Shahin Shahr fined and sentenced him to six months in prison. The sentence was suspended for one year. Salehi was arrested at his home in Isfahan in September 2021 and accused of “insulting the Supreme Leader” and disseminating “propaganda against the state” through publishing his protest songs on social media.
January 26: Reza Nabavi Chashmi was transferred to the Central Prison in Semnan to serve a 32-month prison term on charges of “online activities and insulting state officials.”
January 27: Persian-language news site Independent Farsi reported that the police in Iran had arrested 17 people for posting humorous candid camera clips that “promoted unusual cultural values.” The accounts of social media influencers involved were blocked and they were accused of sensationalism to drive up followers on Instagram. One of them was forced to make a “confession” on state television and apologize for not applying for an official permit.
January 31: The police chief in Bafgh, in Yazd province, said one person had been arrested and charged with “publishing immoral and unconventional movies” on Telegram.
February 3: Security forces prevented an event on Clubhouse to mark 4,000 days since the extra-judicial house arrest of the Green Movement opposition leaders, Mirhossein Mousavi, Zahra Rahnavard, and Mehdi Karroubi. Security officials have threatened to press charges against the event organizers in Iran.
February 27: The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) in Khuzestan province announced the arrest of a man for “leading cyber activities and spreading corruption.” The man, identified only as “M.V.A.”, was arrested along with a number of his accomplices. While the announcement did not give any details about their activities, the term “spreading corruption” typically refers to promoting Western values and culture.
March 2: Two teenage girls, with about 300 followers on Instagram, were arrested in Abadan, Khuzestan province, for what was described as “publishing immoral content on the Internet.”
March 6: Two young men, 19 and 21-years old, were arrested in Gilan province for running an Instagram account containing “immoral” photos and videos.
March 7: Yasmin Aziz Azan, an advocate for Arab ethnic minority rights, was arrested after being summoned to the Intelligence Ministry office in the port city of Khorramshahr and transferred to the Khuzestan provincial capital, Ahvaz. Her Instagram account was shut down.
March 9: Mohammad Alishvandi and Fathollah Gholami, two members of the Teachers Trade Association, were summoned to the Revolutionary Court in Farashband, Fars province, and charged with “propaganda against the state on the Internet.”
March 10: A photography studio owner was arrested in Gilan province for posting “indecent” samples of his work on Instagram. The police forced him to delete all the content on his account with several thousand followers.
March 11: The FATA police chief warned in an interview that online sale of contraception pills and condoms was illegal and would be prosecuted as criminal activity. He said six people had been arrested in Alborz, Tehran and Kermanshah provinces for selling abortion pills online.
March 12: The police chief in Kohgilouyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province said one person, identified as “R.F.”, had been arrested for “disturbing public opinion on social media by posting provocative images to instigate debates on honor and revenge.”
March 24: Journalist and political activist Hossein Roueintan was sentenced to 20 years in prison by the Revolutionary Court in Dashtestan, Bushehr province. He was charged with disseminating “propaganda against the state” and “insulting the sacred and the Supreme Leader” in connection with launching online campaigns and calling for “illegal” rallies.
March 26: In Divandareh, Kurdistan province, the admin of an Instagram account was arrested for posting alleged “obscenities and insults against the police.” No details have been made public.
FATA: The violator of digital rights
In the first quarter of 2022, we documented more than 20 instances of violations of digital rights by Iran’s police, judiciary and security forces. For decades, Iran has trampled on the basic principles of international human rights law, namely the right to freedom of expression, privacy, and assembly. The cases in this report confirm that human rights violations in Iran persist and impact legitimate online activities, making the Islamic Republic one of the worst enemies of the Internet in the world.
In the coming months, we will continue to monitor and document suppression of online activities, with the hope that these reports will contribute to greater transparency and accountability for authorities, and a safer digital environment for Iranians, particularly vulnerable groups such as activists and journalists.
