Iran continues to be cut off from the internet: The darkness that remains

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Since the end of 2025, people in Iran have been protesting against the regime. These were the largest nationwide protests since the Woman-Life-Freedom movement, which began in 2022. When internet and telephone connections were shut down on January 8, 2026, political observers and human rights activists expressed their concern that the regime would now suppress the protests with massive force.

Meanwhile, the worst fears have been surpassed. Even the head of state, Ali Khamenei, speaks of thousands of deaths, while blaming the USA and Israel as always. Although there are no independently verified casualty figures, even estimates of 12,000 killed demonstrators seem credible given the scale of the nationwide protests and reports of dozens of bodies from individual hospitals.

Videos and information about the protests are only reaching the outside world drop by drop. Often, the recording dates of images in videos cannot be precisely determined. Because landline numbers are sometimes reachable, Iranian journalists abroad can only call them partially and with the help of intermediaries in Iran. This way, they can speak indirectly with their sources. However, a proven connection to foreign media can have severe consequences for people in Iran.

From Internet Censorship to Complete Isolation

For over two weeks now, the Iranian regime has not only cut off 92 million people in the country from the outside world, but also deprived millions of people worldwide of any possibility to contact family and friends in Iran. Many are worried and desperate.

It is not new that the Iranian state tries to control the flow of information and prevent the dissemination of images and news during times of protest. However, what is new is the dimension of the current isolation policy. Never before has Iran been almost completely disconnected from the global internet for such a long period.

25 years ago, the Islamic Republic officially promoted the use of the internet, but issues such as access, control, and content on the net were controversial from the beginning. Over the years, state representatives have repeatedly spoken of establishing a national network, or as they called it, "Internet-e Halal," an Islamic network, or "Internet-e Melli" – literally translated as People's Internet.

Tactical Contradiction

The decision-making process regarding internet control has become increasingly opaque since then. Essential decisions are practically no longer made by the officially responsible Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, but are de facto held by security agencies such as intelligence services. Recent statements by Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani confirm that the current measures were a "security-related decision."

Mohajerani also claims that despite the ongoing, extensive nationwide restrictions, access to the internet "continues to be recognized as a right." This dual strategy of the state has also been known for years: While seemingly reform-oriented or technocratic governments promise relaxations, opaque institutions such as intelligence services, the Revolutionary Guard, and influential clerics advance the infrastructure for internet shutdowns.

The news platform IranWire recently reported that Mohajerani told media representatives that the "international internet" would remain shut down at least until the Iranian New Year. The new year begins in Iran on March 21.

Conflicting statements from various state circles are fueling speculation about whether the internet connection will be restored at all. On January 19, the twelfth day of the internet shutdown in Iran, Ahmad Nirumand, chairman of the Digital Transformation Commission, stated that foreign platforms would not be made accessible again for the time being. Nirumand emphasized that "under the current conditions," there is currently no room for re-establishing connections to international platforms.

Statements by the Minister of Communications about a possible lifting of restrictions have been postponed due to the changed situation. It is currently not the appropriate time for such discussions. The Secretary of the National Security Council, Ali-Akbar Pourjamshidian, also said on state television this week that it is currently unclear when internet access will be restored.

Internet Access with State Approval

Although many internet users have gained access to blocked websites and social networks via proxies over the years, state restrictions have made internet use difficult. According to Iranian law, the use and distribution of proxies are punishable. Nevertheless, Iranians who can afford it know where to buy these so-called Filtershekan (filter breakers).

Furthermore, Starlink, the satellite-based system from Elon Musk's company SpaceX, has been spreading for some time, enabling internet access. An estimated up to a hundred thousand users are using it to circumvent internet censorship. According to a report by BBC Persian, Starlink is widespread in Tehran and other cities, but especially in the south of the country due to its proximity to the Persian Gulf. The forbidden hardware is smuggled across the border and sold for around 2,000 US dollars. The price alone makes it clear that this technology is only available to a minority with the appropriate financial means.

Nevertheless, the Iranian ambassador recently wrote an official letter to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), complaining about the use of Starlink in the country and calling it an "unauthorized" means of communication on Iranian sovereign territory. He called on the UN organization based in Geneva to take measures to deactivate and shut down the satellite terminals, as they are being "misused by organized terrorist groups." Starlink usage has been punishable since the end of June 2025. Current accusations such as terrorism and espionage now significantly increase the risk for users, as they face the death penalty.

Starlink is not the only reason why observers warn of a two-tier society regarding internet access in Iran. A Persian term has now been established that refers to legal and unrestricted access to the internet in Iran: "white internet." The state grants its selected officials and trusted supporters permission for free internet access, while the majority of the population is only allowed to use domestic websites and apps.

For many years, the Iranian regime has been investing in domestic apps intended to replace foreign social networks. The population has so far met these offers with skepticism, out of concern for privacy and due to a lack of trust in the state. However, in view of the ongoing isolation, many may soon have no other choice.

What the Days-Long Internet Shutdown Means

The trigger for the protests was the country's current economic crisis. The national currency, the Rial, lost value not just daily, but hourly. The Rial reached a low point at the end of December 2025 with an exchange rate of 1.45 million Rial per US dollar. Prices have been skyrocketing for a long time, and the population is getting poorer and poorer. The state blames economic sanctions for the poor situation, while people see and feel the corruption within the state daily.

It was initially businessmen who went on strike and protested. This led to the closure of some markets and a drop in revenue. Many people are day laborers, and the closure of the bazaars affects them the hardest. Many women in Iran also run small online businesses from home, selling handicrafts or self-made clothing. They rely on networks like Instagram, WhatsApp, and Telegram. There, they share pictures and prices of their work and are contacted by their customers. These women are among the economically weakest in society, as they are often single or single mothers and have no other income.

At the same time, the share of the digital economy, i.e., economic activities primarily characterized by the internet, software, apps, and IT systems, is estimated to be between four and twelve percent of the gross domestic product. While the economic damage here is certainly the highest, other sectors are also immensely harmed by the internet blockade. Due to the blocking of internet access, business people have no way to accept card payments or make payments themselves. In addition, many people have security concerns that prevent them from opening their businesses or visiting businesses as customers. Eyewitnesses report masked, armed state militias spreading fear and terror on the streets.

Political decisions such as the shutdown of the internet connection, as well as the exercise of massive violence by state forces such as the paramilitary Basij militia and Revolutionary Guards, lead directly to economic damage. Already after the internet blockades imposed in September 2022, around 400,000 companies in the country were threatened with closure solely due to the blocking of Instagram.

The official Persian-language account of the US Department of State sharply criticized the ongoing internet shutdown as a deliberate measure to suppress the population. The internet outage causes more than 37 million US dollars in damage to Iran per day. This figure is a current assessment by NetBlocks, the independent organization that monitors and analyzes internet disruptions and blockages worldwide.

Different Assessments

According to Reza Olfatnasab, chairman of the national community of online businesses, the ongoing internet shutdown has caused significant economic damage. Based on market data, he estimates that each day without the internet causes digital companies in Iran losses of around 38 trillion Rial, equivalent to about 27.1 million US dollars. In the first two weeks of the shutdown, total losses are said to have exceeded 285 million US dollars. This is contrasted by significantly lower estimates from official government representatives: Ehsan Chitsaz, Deputy Minister of Communications, rejected the high industry figures and put the daily damage at a maximum of about 6 trillion Rial, or about 4.3 million US dollars.

According to reports, the state's damage calculations from the internet blockade do not align with the actual development of e-commerce, as in 2019 the annual volume of electronic commerce was about 208 trillion Rial, which corresponded to an average daily turnover of around 5.7 trillion Rial. Converted at today's exchange rate, this would be 4.07 billion US dollars daily. In 2019, however, the actual value of turnover was significantly higher, as the value of the Rial has fallen tenfold since then.

Moreover, previous experiences with internet shutdowns show that the consequences are not only financial. Minister of Communications Sattar Hashemi reported that after the internet blockade during the twelve-day war against Israel in the summer of 2025, about 30 percent of jobs in the digital economy sector were lost.

The gap between state assessments and figures from the private business sector is unlikely to interest consumers in Iran. They now have to pay the equivalent of 12 US dollars for a liter of cooking oil, while the legal minimum wage is around 71 US dollars per month.

(dmk)