{"id":5617,"date":"2025-10-21T15:27:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T15:27:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/filter.watch\/english\/?p=5617"},"modified":"2025-10-21T15:27:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-21T15:27:07","slug":"network-and-policy-monitoring-september-2025-iran-uses-cryptocurrency-as-a-new-tool-to-resist-sanctions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filter.watch\/english\/2025\/10\/21\/network-and-policy-monitoring-september-2025-iran-uses-cryptocurrency-as-a-new-tool-to-resist-sanctions\/","title":{"rendered":"The Digital Iron Cage: Internet Micro-Disruptions, Crypto Control, and the Rise of Digital Authoritarianism in Iran"},"content":{"rendered":"

In September, based on identified disruptions alone, Iran's internet experienced the equivalent of 25 full days of outages in a single month. Despite official claims of \"improving internet quality,\" even officials within the Ministry of Communications have admitted that 80% of users rely on VPNs and 70% of the country's traffic flows through circumvention tools. At the same time, despite promises of a \"digital transformation and support for the innovation economy,\" policy-making in September moved toward greater centralization, control, and restriction across all digital sectors<\/span><\/p>\n

Key Findings:<\/b><\/h4>\n
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  1. Increased, Shorter Disruptions: There were 158 identified internet disruptions in September, more than double the 60 cases recorded in August. These disruptions, though individually shorter, lasted a total of 617 hours and 15 minutes, equivalent to 25 full days of outages in one month.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Widespread Impact: Over 70% of the disruptions were of a medium scale, each time affecting the internet access of 500,000 to one million users.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. VPN Usage Soars: While the government talks about \"improving internet quality and traffic growth,\" official data from the Ministry of Communications reveals that over 80% of users rely on VPNs for open internet access, and 70% of the country's traffic passes through filtering circumvention tools. This statistic effectively exposes the ineffectiveness of filtering policies.<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Cryptocurrency Regulations Tighten: New, heavy-handed regulations (e.g., steep capital requirements and stablecoin limits) are designed to eliminate small exchanges and channel the crypto market into a centralized, banking-backed system, prioritizing state control over financial innovation.<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. Expanded Digital Surveillance: Policies like reviewing social media in job screenings and creating a \"specialized ICT customs\" to track and control all imported digital hardware reveal a significant expansion of state surveillance over private life and critical infrastructure.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Internet Access and Infrastructure<\/b><\/h4>\n
    1.Internet Disruptions\u00a0<\/b><\/h5>\n

    In September, Iranians experienced a significant number of internet disruptions. According to various network monitoring tools, including the IODA (Internet Outage Detection and Analysis) website, ArvanCloud Radar, and Cloudflare data, a total of 158 outages were identified. These disruptions lasted a combined 617 hours and 15 minutes, which is the equivalent of approximately 25 full days in a single month.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Crucially, while the number of disruptions more than doubled, the total cumulative outage time actually decreased (617 hours in September vs. 680 hours in August). This indicates a shift in tactics from long, sustained blackouts toward a pattern of more frequent, shorter disruptions (micro-outages) across the network.<\/span><\/p>\n

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    In terms of affected users, the majority of last month's outages were on a medium scale. More than 70% of these disruptions, based on factors like the operator, time, and location, affected the user experience of approximately 500,000 to one million people at a time. This means internet access for half to one million users was affected for 7 out of every 10 disruptions. Data from September indicates that over 90% of the internet disruptions were caused by issues within data centers, suggesting that power outages likely remain a major factor contributing to instability in these facilities.<\/span><\/p>\n

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    Regarding the timing of these disruptions, about 60% occurred during off-peak hours (e.g., from midnight to 6 a.m.). This is a shift from August, when a larger share of outages took place during peak usage hours.<\/span><\/p>\n

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    Geographically, more than 90% of the September disruptions were confined to a single province. Only about 7% affected multiple provinces simultaneously, a pattern consistent with what was observed in August, where most outages were localized to one city or region.<\/span><\/p>\n

    2.State Narrative vs. User Reality<\/b><\/h5>\n

    Even in September, official government <\/span>narratives<\/span><\/a> continued to paint a positive picture of Iran's internet quality. They announced \"traffic growth,\" highlighted \"maritime fiber diplomacy\" in the region, and launched quality monitoring systems.<\/span><\/p>\n

    However, the reality for users tells a different story: poor quality and ongoing filtering. Even Ministry of Communications officials have admitted that 80% of users are forced to use VPNs, with 70% of the country's internet traffic <\/span>passing<\/span><\/a> through these circumvention tools. This reality is a direct consequence of the government's filtering policies.<\/span><\/p>\n

    The judiciary once again reiterated its demand for foreign platforms to have a \"legal representative in Iran.\" However, an <\/span>annual report<\/span><\/a> from <\/span>Cafe Bazaar <\/span><\/a>(Iran\u2019s version of Google Play) revealed millions of searches for censorship circumvention tools and foreign platforms like WhatsApp and Instagram, highlighting the stark divide between official policies and the public's desire for open internet access.<\/span><\/p>\n

    3.Attack on VPNs and Digital Business<\/b><\/h5>\n

    In a move framed as a response to public demand regarding \"profiteers of the filtered space,\" the parliament has officially launched an <\/span>investigation<\/span><\/a> into VPN sellers. There is concern that this investigation will ultimately lead to increased financial and legal surveillance of ordinary internet users, especially if a clear distinction isn't made between the commercial sale and personal use of these tools.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Furthermore, the sudden blocking of the health platform \"Dr. Dr.\" (an Iranian digital health platform) once again highlighted the instability of the legal environment and the threat to public trust in digital businesses. This abrupt action, carried out without any prior notice, drew protests from the<\/span> Tehran E-Commerce Association<\/span><\/a>. The \"Dr. Dr.\" website went offline on the morning of September 20th and was back online on September 22nd.<\/span><\/p>\n

    The judiciary once again <\/span>reiterated<\/span><\/a> its demand for foreign platforms to have a \"legal representative in Iran\" and to immediately remove \"criminal\" content. This is a recurring tactic to push users toward domestic platforms.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Policies<\/b><\/h4>\n
    1.Cryptocurrency Policies Under Scrutiny<\/b><\/h5>\n

    In September, Iran's cryptocurrency policies entered a new phase, focusing more than ever on restriction and surveillance. This trend is rooted in the\u00a0 <\/span>\"Cryptocurrency Charter\"<\/span><\/a> approved last year and is being implemented through regulations from the Central Bank (CBI) and the Securities and Exchange Organization (SEO).<\/span><\/p>\n

    Examples of these policies include:<\/span><\/p>\n