{"id":4024,"date":"2022-11-04T13:56:12","date_gmt":"2022-11-04T13:56:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/filter.watch\/en\/?p=4024"},"modified":"2022-11-04T14:05:11","modified_gmt":"2022-11-04T14:05:11","slug":"part-two-childrens-internet-and-digital-rights-in-iran-creating-an-online-ecosystem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filter.watch\/english\/2022\/11\/04\/part-two-childrens-internet-and-digital-rights-in-iran-creating-an-online-ecosystem\/","title":{"rendered":"Part Two – Children\u2019s Internet and Digital Rights in Iran: Creating an Online Ecosystem"},"content":{"rendered":"

Read Part One Here<\/a> and Part Three Here\u00a0<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n

Summary<\/strong><\/h2>\n

After the ratification of plans and policies to create a \u201cchildren\u2019s internet\u201d\u00a0 the first major step for turning these plans into reality was the introduction of SIM cards for children by mobile network providers. What the authorities hope to create per their policies has not yet fully materialized, so what we are seeing so far are restrictions on access to the global internet and the censorship of content.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The resolution on the<\/span> \u2018Protection of Children and Teenages on the Internet<\/span><\/a>\u2019 defines an ecosystem to be created within the National Information Network (NIN) as a means of limiting access to the international internet, but the restrictions do not end there. The policymakers also planning for further limits within the NIN as well:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cProtected environment: An ecosystem as part of the NIN that provides a specific and defined level of access to information, communication and services according to the age, gender and other cultural and social characteristics of minors, children and teenagers.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Through the NIN - a network designed to be separate from the international internet - access will not only be tailored based on age and gender, but also on what the policymakers have described as \u2018cultural and social conditions.\u2019 This is an indication that controls will be put on various levels in what <\/span>Filterwatch <\/span><\/i>refers to as \u201c<\/span>layered filtering<\/span><\/a>.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Implementation of High-Level Policies by Mobile Network Operators<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Following the release of regulatory guidelines on children\u2019s access to the internet, mobile network operators began to offer dedicated SIM cards and related services for children,\u00a0 including providers such as <\/span>RighTel<\/span><\/a>, Hamrah-e-Aval\u2019s (MCI) <\/span>Anarestan<\/span><\/a> SIM card, and Irancell\u2019s <\/span>Simba<\/span><\/a> SIM card. All of these SIM cards disconnect users from the international internet and only allow access to a specific content through a \u201cwhite-list,\u201d as <\/span>explained by Anarestan's<\/span><\/a> website. In other words, children using these specific SIM cards can only access content from a predetermined list, though Anarestan gives parents the ability to suggest sites to be added to the list, they must first be \u2018evaluated\u2019 by Irancell\u2019s experts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It should be noted however that the restrictions on the child SIM cards only apply for accessing the internet and not messages or normal calls. Although, <\/span>some operators<\/span><\/a> do offer a limited ability to make a video call for emergencies. As an example, Irancell\u2019s SIM card for children <\/span>does not set<\/span><\/a> any limits on audio calls but it can limit the amount of hours children can use mobile internet.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The children\u2019s SIM cards are only sold to adults who would have to subscribe to the special plan to be used by child(ren). Responsibility for any misuse of the plan would ultimately rest with the adult subscriber.<\/span><\/p>\n

RighTel\u2019s Children\u2019s Internet Service<\/strong><\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

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\u00a0 \u00a0 RighTel\u2019s children\u2019s internet services<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2014 RighTel <\/span>introduced<\/span><\/a> a special SIM card to launch its <\/span>child and teenagers service<\/span><\/a>. According to its website, \u201cThis free service can be activated on RighTel subscribers\u2019 current SIM cards without the need to purchase a new one. Also, the tariff will not change even with the activation of the child internet service.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

With the activation of this service, \u201cthe user can only access domestic content online.\u201d In other words, RighTel\u2019s SIM card for children will connect to NIN, which carries government approved content. This specific tariff is charged at half the price of\u00a0 international internet traffic.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Irancell\u2019s internet service for children and teenagers<\/span><\/p>\n

Simba: Irancell\u2019s Internet Service for Children and Adolescents<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Iracell <\/span>introduced<\/span><\/a> its \u201cSimba\u201d SIM card as part of its <\/span>internet service for children and teenagers<\/span><\/a> in the Spring of 2015. However, in order to activate the internet service for children, there\u2019s no need to purchase a new SIM card. The service allows subscribers to access \u201csuitable\u201d websites for children and teenagers.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to Irancell\u2019s website, the following websites are made available through their service:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Service<\/span><\/td>\nAge Range<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SkyRoom<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Shad<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Filimo School<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Dana Plus<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Dana<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pooya Network<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Aparat Kids<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lenz<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Digitoon<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Cafe Bazaar<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Myket<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Dorsa Family<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Toop Market<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Charkhoneh<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Neshan Maps<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Balad<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sports 3<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Snapp<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Nepsy<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Salam Zaban<\/span><\/td>\nUnspecified<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Irancell gives subscribers the ability to recommend other sites for potential inclusion in this list following an \u2018evaluation\u2019 by Irancell\u2019s experts, however, they do not provide details on what the evaluation process entails.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Anarestan Ecosystem<\/h2>\n

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\u00a0Anarestan\u2019s SIM card for children and teenagers<\/span><\/p>\n

The <\/span>Anarestan<\/span><\/a> SIM card for children was initiated by <\/span>Amin Holding<\/span><\/a> (Persian: \u0647\u0644\u062f\u06cc\u0646\u06af \u0627\u0645\u06cc\u0646) in 2015. According to the company\u2019s website, it also offers other products, such as a tablet for children and teenagers, which it states is\u00a0 in line with its \u201cmission to protect children on the internet.\u201d According to their <\/span>FAQ page<\/span><\/a>, Anarestan SIM card - offered by Hamrah-e-Aval (MCI), will only allow access to WhatsApp and Google search, but not Instagram or other popular foreign apps.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Chair to Anarestan\u2019s board, Abolfazl Mahmoudi, said in an <\/span>interview<\/span><\/a> in November 2021: \u201cThis SIM card is especially designed for children and teenagers aged between 6-18, giving them access only to pre-selected child-friendly content. Anarestan\u2019s experts will regularly explore the internet for new sites and update their white-list.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Anarestan does not allow the use of VPNs. Interestingly, the company deleted its <\/span>response<\/span><\/a> to a question about whether VPNs could be used, but the response is still visible via their website\u2019s meta HTML source which states \u201cno. Because of this age group is highly sensitive,\u00a0 VPNs cannot be used.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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Screenshot of the HTML code for the Anarestan website\u00a0<\/span>which shows the use of VPNs have been deactivated.<\/span><\/p>\n

Children\u2019s Internet Ecosystems<\/strong><\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

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\u2018Anarestan\u2019s Ecosystem for Children\u2019\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Anarestan is not just a SIM card but it is also an economic platform or a virtual ecosystem. The Project Manager for Anarstan\u2019s SIM card, Jafar Ziari <\/span>claims<\/span><\/a> that \u201cwhile we have restricted children and teenagers from accessing unsuitable environments, we have also created attractive content for them.\u201d Ziari also added that \u201con Anarestan, we have a whole department to conduct analysis and produce special content for children and teenagers. Shah Ghul Studio produces digital games alongside ChiKhoobeh which offers content analysis and organizes content based on usefulness and safe educational value, and based on the entertainment level for children and teenagers. ChiKhoobeh is a free portal, which was awarded the top prize in the 11th Digital Media Festival, in the family and lifestyle category, and is now being used as a reference to analyze and classify content for dynamic animated cartoons on state television.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Anarestan not only has faster and cheaper access to approved content for children, but also generates content within its economic ecosystem as well.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

According to Ziari, \u201cIn terms of content, Anarestan itself is a content generator. Apart from producing and categorizing content, we try to use all content producers\u2019 potential for children and teenagers.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Boomino Ecosystem<\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

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Boomino's ecosystem for children<\/span><\/p>\n

Boomino is another SIM card\/ecosystem created for children. The portal is also a product of Hamrah-e-Aval which offers domestic alternatives to the international internet services. The following chart shows the type of services available for each age group. It should be noted that none of them provide access to Instagram or Google search, and instead use \u2018Zarebin\u2019 an Iranian search engine.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Service<\/span><\/td>\nAge 3+<\/span><\/td>\nAge 7+<\/span><\/td>\nAge 11+<\/span><\/td>\nAge 15+<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Educational portals such as SkyRoom<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Shad<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Filimo School<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pooya TV<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Nahal TV<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Aparat Kids<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Toop Market<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Dorsa Market<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Myket<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Cafe Bazaar<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
WhatsApp<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ita<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Aparat<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Instagram<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Zarebin<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Google<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Neshan<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sports 3<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Tepsy<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Zanbil<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Snapp Market<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
DigiKala<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Wikipedia<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u274c<\/span><\/td>\n\u2714<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

The creation of a children\u2019s internet is a puzzle piece in the plans for wider internet restriction in Iran and the implementation of layered filtering. Though the plans are being realized at a slow pace, once completed, yet another pathway to the international internet will be shut to Iranians.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read Part Three Here\u00a0<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Read Part One Here and Part Three Here\u00a0 Summary After the ratification of plans and policies to create a \u201cchildren\u2019s internet\u201d\u00a0 the first major step for turning these plans into reality was the introduction of SIM cards for children by mobile network providers. What the authorities hope to create per their policies has not yetContinue reading \"Part Two – Children\u2019s Internet and Digital Rights in Iran: Creating an Online Ecosystem\"<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":4018,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4024","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-investigations","entry"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t