Comment by bhouston
14 hours ago
I suspect the Internet blackout in Iran is not actually related to its citizens - it isn't about silencing its citizens.
It is to prevent hacking and tracking by US and Israel of what is going on over there, it is defensive since it has been shown that Iran's connected infrastructure is thoroughly compromised.
It’s 100% to prevent citizens from becoming organized. The regime is most fearful of this.
There's multiple motives, not just counter-organization. A media blackout prevents OSINT damage analysis, much like how the IDF and CENTCOM both censor reporting of attacks on their in-theater installations.
They could easily just censor that, especially since a dictatorship has far more control over the media compared to democracies.
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How did people organize pre-Internet times though?
Through social gatherings that mostly don't exist anymore.
which is the exact same reason China bans Starlink.
Chinas level of internet filtration and censorship nowhere near Iran or Russia. You just buy tourist eSIM and you're golden in China and literally everyone who wants do it.
Chinese government don't care about small percent of population accessing open internet.
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I wonder why BYD is banned in the US. Are we afraid they'll be used to transport people to gatherings?
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There's something to be said if it connects (via ethernet or via hidden eSIM) Starlink to local Iranian internet - it is hard to access otherwise.
There is no doubt that CIA has access to Starlink, that's a massive amount of crucial intel right there in battlefront.
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this
well... so obvious
I think the regime narrative is mostly made up by Americans what's the difference between any of the Arab countries from Iran. The only difference is they are not controlled by America. It the same bullshit narrative of promoting democracy but in reality it's just about pushing for a government no matter how bad as long as it supports US control.
Iranians are not Arabs and thousands of them got gunned down earlier this year protesting the regime. "America bad" doesn't change the fact that the Iranian people deserve a better future.
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FYI it’s not an Arab country
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The blackout started back in January before the US even got involved.
Due to widespread protests and an attempt to crack down on coordination. This chain of events was widely reported.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Internet_blackout_in_Iran
It definitely ramped up with the invasion. I watched the webcam streams go dark.
Before the US started an open war. US has been involved in a relentless anti-Iranian campaign since before I was born (I'm 55).
The internet is only off for those who don't have a special sim card, i.e. those who aren't associated with the IRGC.
Is Iran's domestic internet still fully operational (sans access to/from the outside world)? If so, I wouldn't think the cut-off would help much security-wise because a single Starlink terminal would allow the US/Israel domestic access.
I don't think it is. At least from Iranians I've heard from, domestic internet was online for a little while but was turned off in February or so.
How do people communicate now? And why wouldn’t that be compromised?
It’s defensive indeed! It’s defense against the people whom the regime is most afraid of!
Don’t know why you’re getting downvoted for pointing out the obvious: yes obviously the US and Israel will exploit the information system of their enemy if they can, and it’s absolutely rational to deny them the opportunity to do so.
Should internet and outside access be cut for people of Gaza and Lebanon too? Aren’t they targeted by Israel as well?
If they could credibly threaten your infrastructure then it makes sense. If they have no real organized hacking capabilities then no. But the US has already attacked Iran through computers before with Stuxnet and is the world leader in software and networking knowledge so it does make perfect sense for Iran to disconnect its networks from outside.
You might also have to consider the propaganda campaigns the US could run against an Iranian population with web access. If the population isn't more discontent now than it already was, "secretly" replacing commercial ad placements on western websites with US propaganda when the requests come from Iranian sources could make them discontent or inflame them further, which is bad for the Iranian government.
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The government of Lebanon is cooperating with Israel - it's only the southerners/Hezbollah in conflict, at least for now. The people of Gaza are cut off for the most part. The strict censorship inside Israel is what you should compare to - not as strict as a total access ban, but if you say the wrong things or take pictures of the wrong stuff you're going to prison.
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My point is that the people of Iran aren’t the target of the disruption.
Remember when Ukraine used the Russian cellular internet to operate drones that destroyed numerous Russian heavy bomber aircraft? That’s what the US/Israel would logically be expected to do if there were wide open internet access in Iran.
This is obvious game theory playing out militarily, people only see political suppression but warfare is a totally different ballgame.
If China were waging large scale war on the US I’d expect the exact same countermeasures to happen.
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Except that Iran has been doing it since 2019: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_censorship_in_Iran