During the month of May, Iranian authorities used internet shutdowns and disruptions extensively as part of crackdowns on protests across the country. Their lack of hesitation in the use of such methods to limit the freedom of expression of the Iranian public is concerning and an indication that in the coming months and years we will likely witness such shutdowns more regularly. We have published a detailed report on the May shutdowns here.
During this month we did not witness any notable policy changes in Iran. The Ministry of Information and Communications Technology of Iran (ICT Ministry), however, has increased its efforts around the protection of children online. As they have been proposed, these so-called protections will likely lead to greater surveillance measures and censorship. In May, the Iranian ICT Minister also appointed a veteran advocate of internet localisation, Rasool Jalili, to an important regulatory body within the ministry.
Supreme Council for Cyberspace meets
On 17 May, the Supreme Council for Cyberspace (SCC), the highest policy-making body for the internet in the Islamic Republic, convened in a session chaired by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. Iranian news agencies or official websites have not released any details regarding what was discussed during the meeting.
ICT Ministry new activities internet and protecting children
On 22 May, “The Strategic Committee for the Protection of Children and Teenagers” met for the third time since its formation. According to a tweet by Mehdi Salem, the spokesperson for the ICT ministry, the Minister and the Secretary of the SCC attended the meeting.
Although we have no details about this meeting, we do know that in July 2021 the SCC passed a resolution dubbed, “Protection of Teenagers and Children in Cyberspace,” which justifies limiting internet access for children and teenagers in Iran as a “harm reduction” measure. In recent months, Iran’s ICT ministry officials and the SCC officials have increased their emphasis on protecting children and teenagers online and have promised rapid actions in the near future.
The rhetoric and policies passed on this issue are deeply concerning as they pave the way for further surveillance and additional censorship through layered filtering. This refers to a system that provides varying levels of access to online content for different people depending on their status or ability to pay. The resolution notes access will depend on “gender, age, and other social and cultural requirements” of the child or teenager. Moreover, the resolution sets no clear definition for what content is deemed “harmful” nor does it safeguard the right of children to access information. In turn, the proposed policy would grant authorities a broad mandate to create content blacklists and classification systems. The end result would likely be further restrictions on access to information and censorship that go against internationally recognized child rights standards international law.
Rasool Jalili appointed to Regulatory body
On 30 May, Iranian ICT Minister Zarepour appointed new members of the Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA). The new members of the CRA are Rasool Jalili Mohammad Khansari, Shahab Javanmardi, Hossein Mirzapour, and Hossein Nemati. Among the new Members, Rasool Jalili is a veteran of Internet governance in Iran and is an appointee of the SCC. Jalili is a vocal voice for further localisation of the internet and his organisation FAMP has been at the forefront of advocating for limiting access to international services and contents.
This appointment is a clear indication that the ICT Ministry during Raisi’s years will use all of its power to support the long-term vision of a localised, censored, and monitored internet that has been championed by most radical elements of the SCC such as Jalili.
Judiciary and domestic messaging apps
On 5 May, Mohammad Kazemifard the head of Statistics and Information Technology in the Iranian judiciary announced that by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (March 2023) the jJudiciary will be ready to start offering some local government services to Iranian citizens on Iranian state-backed domestic messaging apps. He made the announcement in a meeting with the CEOs of domestic messaging apps iGap, ITA, Soroush Plus, and Gap.
Iranian authorities have been using financial incentives and access to e-government services over the past few years to coerce Iranians into using domestic messaging apps. While many Iranians remain distrustful or uninterested in these messaging apps for privacy and security reasons, moves such as offering e-government services via domestic messaging apps have increased their download rate over the past few years.
A Data protection bill might be forthcoming
On 11 May, Mohammad Khansari, head of the Iranian Information Technology Company, announced that before the end of the current Iranian calendar year, a personal data protection bill would be sent to the Iranian parliament.
In the past, the Hassan Rouhani’s government had drafted a personal data protection bill to try and address the concerns of Iranians on privacy and surveillance. Nonetheless, the bill still offered vague and broad exceptions that would allow Iranian authorities to monitor online activities and access personal data. The bill drafted by Rouhani’s administration was never proposed to the parliament for unknown reasons. The forthcoming bill by Khansari is also unlikely to secure the privacy of Iranians or address the widespread concerns around surveillance.
State-backed children’s entertainment website boasts more than 4 million users
On 28 May, children’s entertainment and education video streaming website Digitoon announced that it had achieved a new milestone of more than 4 million users in the past Iranian calendar year. The website is financially backed by the Iranian state and internet users inside the country can access it free of internet browsing charges.
This is a clear example of Iranian authorities using financial incentives to increase the use of boost the use of the internet to access domestic hosted services and data. Offering cheaper and faster internet access to browse domestically hosted content remains a key strategy in developing the National Information Network.
FATA asked to police images of women’s hair salons
On 19 May, Mohammad Taghi Pourmohamadi, a member of the Assembly of Experts, requested that the Iranian cyber police (FATA) take action against the publication of videos and images of women’s hairstyles on hair salon Instagram accounts.
In recent years, FATA has played an active role in the suppression of forms of online expression, identities, and lifestyles disfavored by Iranian authorities. Pourmohamad’s request is yet another example of Iranian officials calling on FATA to play an even more aggressive role policing content and women’s free expression.
Mobinnet claims a cyber attack
On 15 May, Iranian Internet provider, Mobinnet, released a statement to explain disruptions that occurred to their services one day earlier. Mobinnet claimed that they had fallen victim to an “extensive” cyber attack but did not offer further information or evidence to substantiate such a claim.
ICT Ministry links digital inclusion to National Information Network
On 18 May, the Iranian internet provider MTN IranCell held a ceremony to announce expanded access to theto of the National Information Network (NIN) to 600 new rural villages across the country. This expansion is in line inline with existing policies to increase network infrastructure particularly in remote areas.
On 30 May, Iraj Rouhi, an advisor to the Iranian ICT Minister, claimed that if the mMinistry is sufficiently financially supported, they can guarantee NIN coverage across 95% of villages in the country by the end of the current Iranian calendar year.
This increased access is certainly welcomed and should be a priority in government infrastructure spending. Nonetheless, this access is still limited by the framework of the NIN’s information controls that limit content and increase the surveillance capacity of the state security apparatussector.
