Iran's internet blackout has ended, findings show, but most technology experts, internet monitoring groups and Iranians living abroad say access is heavily filtered and remains largely blocked.
The government in Tehran has rejected allegations of a clampdown, but acknowledged that internet access in the country has not returned to levels seen before nationwide protests that began at the end of December and continued for weeks.
“The current disruptions stem from restrictions beyond the control of the Ministry of Communications,” wrote Behzad Akbari, Iran's Deputy Minister of Communications in a post on X this week.
“The continuation of this situation inflicts serious damage on the digital ecosystem and people's daily access." He did not detail the root cause of the problem.
NetBlocks, an organisation that monitors internet connectivity and digital governance around the world, said reports from Iran show authorities continue to heavily filter the internet, even though data superficially might suggest otherwise.
“Whitelisting and intermittent connectivity continue to limit Iranians' contact with the outside world,” NetBlocks said. “Networks are visible internationally but broadly restricted.”
Iranian authorities essentially shut down the internet in January to limit media coverage of demonstrations across the country. Thousands of people were killed in the brutal crackdown on protesters.
Internet rights groups say the blackout was among the longest ever recorded, though in recent days data began to suggest Tehran has started to lift it.
Sources in the US with family members in Iran told The National they are still struggling to contact loved ones.
“We still can't communicate and internet is very spotty,” said an expat living in Michigan who did not want to be identified because he wants to protect his family in Iran.
“My father managed to connect briefly and let me know that everyone is safe."
Initially during the blackout, reports indicated that Elon Musk's Starlink low-earth-orbit (LEO) satellite internet service had been activated in Iran, but the lack of Starlink terminals there made connections limited at best.
Experts also alleged that Iranian authorities in recent years have become more proficient at blocking the increasingly popular LEO services.
“The emergence of LEO-specific jammers across Iran and other repressive regimes reflects strategic investments and, combined with the criminalisation of unauthorised terminals and door-to-door seizures,” wrote technology and human rights analyst Dinah van der Geest for the non-profit group, Tech Policy Press.
“This shows that the technical vulnerability becomes a practical lever once states are willing to integrate it into a wider internet shutdown."
Tehran, meanwhile, has continued to deny that internet access throughout Iran is filtered or whitelisted, calling the accusations “entirely baseless”.
“It is stressed that a stable internet is not merely an option for the economy and digital transformation – it is a vital necessity,” Mr Akbari wrote on X.
