Amidst the ongoing tensions between Iran and Israel, the Iran administration has reportedly implemented a near-total internet blackout. According to reports from Kentinc and Netblocks – two internet connectivity tracking firms – Iran’s internet access plummeted around 5:30 P.M. local time, thus limiting citizens from accessing and sharing information with the outside world, said NBC News.
Commenting on the reason behind the internet blackout, a spokesperson for the Iranian government said that the restrictions were a direct response to alleged Israeli cyberattacks. Although Israel has yet to make any comments regarding this, the latest measure aligns with Iran’s practice of imposing internet shutdowns/reductions during periods of civil unrest and external conflict. Prior to this, the country experienced a six-day full internet blackout amidst widespread protests and a subsequent government crackdown in 2019.
The reports suggest that the disruption impacted services such as Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), which are commonly used in Iran to bypass censorship and access foreign websites. Data from Cloudflare, an internet services company, revealed that two major Iranian mobile network providers were effectively disconnected.
Additionally, the Miaan Group, a non-profit advocating for human rights in Iran, says that Western apps like WhatsApp and Instagram, along with the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, have also been blocked. In a previous report, Iran urged its citizens to avoid using WhatsApp on the basis of allegations that its parent company, Meta was seeding data to Israel. WhatsApp denied such claims.
However, the internet blackout isn’t extended to the country’s National Information Network – a localised system of government-approved sites. It is said that these websites remained largely accessible within the country.
