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Government Tightens Control, Ignoring Experts’ Calls for Global Engagement and Open Internet

At a September 16 press conference, Masoud Pezeshkian spoke of his administration’s plan to reform the framework for filtering, a proposal he also raised at the Supreme Security Council. However, in practice, a different outcome has emerged. 

Recent network developments have seen widespread outages due to the Infrastructure Communications Company’s monopoly on internet service provision. The month also saw intentional disruptions and manipulation of encrypted protocols used by circumvention tools, actions reinforced by restrictive laws.

Human error, too, caused multiple disruptions to the network, owing to reasons like poor maintenance conditions at data centers, electrical outages, and the loss of expert talent to emigration.

Network Report

In the past month, Iran’s communications network suffered two main problems: infrastructure disruptions and outages in international connection pathways, along with intentional disruptions to IPv6 protocols. These resulted in a multi-hour outage of international internet for users, as well as severe disruptions to circumvention tools. Additionally, physical issues related to network equipment maintenance caused access outages lasting from six hours to more than two days.

One of the main issues with Iran’s internet is its poor architecture, largely caused by the government and the Communications Infrastructure Company’s monopoly on service provision.By limiting bandwidth, manipulating the network, and controlling service pricing, these actors degrade the quality of service users receive.

The monopoly centralizes all internet access through a single source, making the entire network vulnerable to disruptions with no alternatives for users. It also gives the Infrastructure Communications Company the ability to control internet access during periods of protest.

  • On the night of August 22, the Pishgaman Datacenter suffered a severe traffic drop (as recorded by Cloudflare) owing to a problem connecting to the Infrastructure Communications Company. The network’s routing also suffered major disruptions at this time.
  • On August 27, Iran’s entire internet network saw severe disruptions, nearing total outage. Cloudflare data shows that HTTP protocol traffic – used for web browsing -and DNS connections were also disrupted. Irancell and Hamrah-e Aval – Iran’s two major cell operators – also saw major drops.

Minister of Communications Sattar Hashemi confirmed this disruption, calling it a result of disturbances to the primary incoming internet lines running through Georgia. The disruptions also affected Armenia and Iraq, as observed in those countries’ traffic networks. 

Reduction in Irans gateway traffic on September 5 Source Cloudflare
  • Iran’s internet gateway (AS49666), which belongs to the Infrastructure Communications Company, suffered disruption for a few minutes around 11:30 AM on September 5, according to Ioda’s tracker. Internet communication, circumvention tool connection, and communication by encrypted protocols used by circumvention tools were disrupted at the same time.

Hardware Problems, Human Error, and Electrical Outages

Several factors have impacted Iran’s communications network and caused widespread outages. They include a sanctions-related failure to update equipment, specialist emigration, poor conditions for monitoring and maintenance of network equipment and data centers, and repeated summertime electrical blackouts. 

Disruption at the Mobin Net data center per Arvan Cloud
  • According to a report from Arvan Cloud, the Mobin Net data center suffered disruptions owing to an electrical outage on September 11 from 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM. Electrical blackouts, which have occurred every summer for years, are a common reason for internet disruption in Iran. 
Data center following disruptions to HiWeb as tracked by Arvan Cloud Source Arvan Cloud datacenter radar
  • On September 17, Iran’s datacenter and ISP connections suffered near-total disruption owing to what the company HiWeb, in an apologetic statement, termed “human error.” The issue stemmed from a severed fiber optic cable. In recent years, experts have criticized the failure to observe maintenance standards in Iran’s data centers, among other issues.
Severe disruption to the provider Respina Source IODA

 

  • The provider network Respina (AS42337) suffered a severe disruption from about 6:30 PM to 2:00 AM local time on September 21, according to Ayuda; it was also faced with a drop in traffic as recorded by Cloudflare. The reasons given for it were a technical difficulty at the datacenter and a component problem.

Arash Karimbeigi, CEO at Shatel Mobile, confirmed the outage: 

  • The mobile network of Shatel Mobile, which uses provider AS205647, experienced serious disruptions lasting approximately seven hours starting  on September 22, according to Ayuda and Cloudflare. Arash Karimbeigi, Managing Director of Shatel, attributed this to a technical problem at the network’s core.
Disruption of the Hamrah e Aval datacenter on September 24 Source Arvan Cloud Radar

On September 24, for about one hour beginning around 12:30 PM, the Hamrah-e Aval data center was hit with a major disruption (per Cloudflare), while users inside Iran reported severe disruptions to telephone line routing and internet on this operator. Multiple informed sources told Filterwatch the incident resulted from human error in configuring the network.

IPv6 Disruptions

From 3:30 PM on August 28 until about 1:00 PM the next day local time, Internet Protocol Version 6 for Hamrah-e Aval users across the country was disrupted, leading to near-total disruption of paid circumvention tools. Multiple problems with communications based on TLS protocol – an encrypted network protocol – and connecting to foreign servers by way of the secure SSH protocol on Hamrah-e Aval, Iran Cell, and Iran Telecommunications Company operators were reported. These sorts of disruptions, which have spiked since the Supreme Cyberspace Council’s passage of a bill to limit filter breakers in October/November 2023, cause dramatic reductions in access to circumvention tools and encrypted protocol-dependent communications. 

Disruptions Not Recorded on Charts

For the second consecutive month, Iran Cell’s data center appeared on Arvan Cloud’s radar due to disruptions, and users have reported significant internet issues with this operator. While these incidents are not reflected on sites that monitor internet status, local sources have confirmed their occurrence. Iran Cell has not responded to these disruptions.

Communications Policymaking

  • On September 15, the Majles Research Center published a report entitled “The Dynamics of Data Management in Cyberspace” in which it characterized the end of filtering and a widening of international engagement as first steps toward solving Iran’s internet problems. Three-part reports from the Electronic Commerce Association as well as various recommendations from security experts and digital economy advocates had emphasized the same point. Nonetheless, the government – at least through the end of the Ebrahim Raisi administration – has neglected the issue, choosing instead to focus on “governing cyberspace” and the securitization and militarization of the internet. This trend continued in the past month
  • During his first meeting with the cabinet, the Supreme Leader emphasized the importance of “governing cyberspace.” President Pezeshkian followed this by issuing a directive on managing cyberspace. Among them is Behzad Akbari, a former board member of the Infrastructure Communications Company, who was appointed Managing Director on September 11. Akbari is a proponent of domestic cellphone production. On the same day, Hamid Fatah was named head of the Regulatory Organization. Fatah has previously served as director of the Security Division of the National Information Network Strategic Development Council and head of the Infrastructure Communications Company during Mohammad Javad Azeri Jahromi’s term at the Ministry of Communications in 2017-2018. He has been a strong advocate for legal filtering, actions against circumvention tools, and the implementation of a tiered internet system.
  • Involving the armed forces in the internet space and entry gateways is another of the policies the government is pursuing through legislation and collaboration with the administration. In line with this trend, the Presidential Deputy for Science emphasized two-way collaboration between the technology and defense sectors in a speech to Majles representatives on August 29. 
  • Tiered internet access is an Iranian government policy meant to provide access on a discriminatory basis and control the content users can see.  So far, it has been rolled out in various forms for tech workers, university professors, journalists, and tourists. Rahim Sarhangi, Managing Director for the Kish Free Zone Organization, told Tasnim on September 17 that: “Negotiations have commenced to launch unfiltered high-speed internet in a controlled way on Kish, for the purpose of attracting investors and tourists.”
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Louis Shakibi
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