Internet freedom activists scramble to help Iranians evade Tehran’s digital crackdown
Internet freedom activists are scrambling to help Iranians evade Tehran’s online crackdown and urging the U.S. government and tech companies to do more to help.
Internet freedom activists are scrambling to help Iranians evade Tehran’s online crackdown and are urging the U.S. government and tech companies to do more to help keep a digital lifeline open for protesters.
Digital rights groups say they are sending circumvention tools and other technical advice to Iranians to help them sidestep the regime’s internet restrictions, and some activists are calling for a bolder approach to send in satellite internet gear to avoid the country’s computer networks altogether.
Social media has served as a vital catalyst for the protests that have swept across Iran for more than a week, but the regime has blocked popular social media apps and steadily restricted internet access to try to deprive oxygen to the demonstrations.
“The Iranian government is going after every single channel of communication, no matter what the channel is,” even chat features in video games, said Amir Rashidi, director of internet security and digital rights at the Miaan Group, a Texas-based nonprofit organization that focuses on human rights in Iran. “That’s something completely new.”
For 10 consecutive days, Iran’s three main mobile operators have shut down service at about 4 p.m. local time for about eight hours, said Doug Madory, director of internet analysis for Kentik, a firm that monitors the performance of internet networks.
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