In a concerning move, Iran is reportedly planning to permanently disconnect from the global internet, allowing only select individuals vetted by the regime to access a filtered version of the online world. This drastic shift, if implemented, would have far-reaching consequences for the Iranian people and the country’s economy.
According to a report by Filterwatch, an organization monitoring Iran’s internet censorship, a “confidential plan is underway to turn international internet access into a ‘governmental privilege’.” This would mean that Iranians with security clearance or those who have passed government checks would be the only ones granted access to a restricted version of the global internet. All other Iranians would be relegated to a domestic, parallel internet, cut off from the broader world.
The latest internet shutdown in Iran began on 8 January amid escalating anti-regime protests, and it has been one of the most severe in the country’s history, lasting longer than the 2011 internet shutdown during the Tahrir Square protests in Egypt. This blackout has severely limited the flow of information out of the country, with only a trickle of updates reaching the outside world.
Amir Rashidi, the leader of Filterwatch, warned that state media and government spokespersons have already signaled that this shift towards a closed-off internet is a permanent one, with unrestricted access not expected to return even after the current protests subside.
This move is the culmination of a 16-year effort by the Iranian regime to cement its control over the country’s internet. One aspect of this effort involves a sophisticated system of “whitelisting,” which allows a select few to access the global internet while blocking everyone else. Researchers believe this technology may have been enabled by exports from China.
The other side of this strategy is the development of Iran’s national internet, a domestic, parallel network that can only be accessed within the country. This network provides Iranians with a limited set of websites and applications, all of which are monitored and have virtually no links to the broader internet.
The former U.S. State Department official who worked on internet censorship issues described the idea of Iran permanently breaking from the global internet as “plausible and terrifying,” but also costly. They warned that the economic and cultural impact of such a move would be “really massive,” and that the Iranian authorities may be overplaying their hand.
As the digital rights community raises the alarm, it remains to be seen whether Iran can successfully create a new, permanent online reality, isolated from the rest of the world. The consequences of such a move could be severe, not only for the Iranian people but also for the country’s economy and its place in the global digital landscape.
