Amir Rashidi

Iran’s ‘Stealth Blackout’: A Multi-stakeholder Analysis of the June 2025 Internet Shutdown - Filterwatch Authors: Miaan Group, ASL19, IODA Contributors: Kentik, Cloudflare, OONI, Tor, Lantern, eQualitie, Psiphon Executive Summary The June 2025 Internet shutdown in Iran, carried out during the war with Is...

IODA collaborated with @filter.watch and ASL19 to co-author a report on the 2025 shutdown of the Internet in Iran during the war with Israel. Key contributors included @radar.cloudflare.com @eldomador.bsky.social @ooni.org and more!

Access the report here: filter.watch/english/2025...

Apple alerted Iranians to iPhone spyware attacks, say researchers | TechCrunch Researchers say Apple sent out threat notifications to several Iranians in recent months, saying their iPhones had been hacked. Iran is likely behind the attacks.

NEW: Apple notified several Iranians that they were targets of government spyware in the last year, according to security researchers.

Since 2021, Apple says it has notified people in 150 countries, but we don't always get to know which countries, so this is an interesting data point.

🔍This report underscores that digital security is no longer a purely technical concern—it’s a human rights crisis.

🔍Major social platforms like WhatsApp, Telegram, and Instagram were primary targets for phishing, impersonation, and account takedowns.
🔍Authorities increasingly used cyber tools for social control, seizing accounts for “violations” such as not wearing a hijab or defying Islamic lifestyle norms.

🔍Requests for digital security assistance soared:
+720% growth in individual requests
+70% in organizational requests (and +250% in minority and women’s rights sectors)

🔍Ethnic minorities—particularly in West and East Azerbaijan—saw a fivefold increase in targeted repression.
🔍Iranian activists abroad were targeted in countries including the UK, Germany, France, Slovenia, Austria, and Egypt.

🔍A surge in cyberattacks, phishing campaigns, and online censorship occurred during and after the 12-day war between Israel and Iran.
Over 46% of digital security cases involved women, many of whom faced detention, torture, and even death sentences.

🔍For the first time, three Iranian individuals (two inside #Iran, one in Europe) were targeted by mercenary #spyware similar to #Pegasus—marking a shift from mass surveillance to targeted espionage.

Iran’s digital repression has entered an unprecedented phase.
According to the latest Iran Cyber #ThreatIntelligence Report by The Miaan Group, civil society in and outside Iran is facing a wave of increasingly advanced cyber threats.
miaan.org/wartime-cybe...
Key findings include:

#Iran is back online as of 05:00 UTC (8:30am local).

Iran Telecom Minister:
With conditions returning to normal, the state of communication access has reverted to its previous state.
x.com/HashemiSatta...

1/2 Iran imposed sweeping internet restrictions in the first week of Israel’s military offensive. key findings from Filterwatch’s report:
🔻Full internet shutdowns,including blocking SSH ports that helped maintain access🔻Incoming international traffic blocked a move not even seen in November 2019👇

Near-total Internet blackout in #Iran is continuing into a second day.

Iranian govt has confirmed it is intentional:
"In order to prevent the enemy’s misuse, international Internet access has been temporarily restricted."
t.me/khabaronline... (h/t @ammir.bsky.social)

Iran's government says it shut down internet to protect against cyberattacks | TechCrunch The government cited the recent hacks on Bank Sepah and cryptocurrency exchange Nobite as reasons to shut down internet access to virtually all Iranians.

NEW: Iran's government has now admitted it took down the internet in the country, arguing it was to protect against Israeli cyberattacks.

I spoke to two Iranians who live abroad and can't communicate with their loved ones back home.

"I haven’t heard from them in two days," said @ammir.bsky.social.

Following Israel's attack on #Iran, internet access has been disrupted in parts of the country. All #VPN services are disrupted, and access to the internet has become extremely difficult. Incoming traffic is heavily affected, while the NIN is operating without issues.
#KeepItOn

Iranian media says alleged document trove points to Israel-IAEA collusion Iranian state media began releasing images of what it said were documents related to Israel's nuclear program obtained by Tehran and said they demonstrated collusion between the United Nations nuclear...

My technical analysis of the documents #Iran claims to have obtained by hacking #Israel has been published by Iran International. I had originally shared this analysis publicly on my LinkedIn.
www.iranintl.com/en/202506127...
#CyberSecurity #CyberTradeIntelligence

‼️ Yesterday, on 25th May 2025, #Vietnam started blocking access to Telegram.

This is the first time that we are seeing an instant messaging app blocked in Vietnam.

OONI data: explorer.ooni.org/chart/mat?pr...

#ooni #censorship #telegram

🎯Tomorrow, we’ll publish an investigative report revealing the full details how it works, what tools are used, and how individuals are being identified.
#Isfehan #Iran #hijab #WomanLifeFreedom

Access to public documents is more important than ever. We commend Wired for dropping its paywall for FOIA-based reporting and hope other news outlets will follow its lead.

We commend @wired.com for dropping its paywall for FOIA-based reporting and hope other news outlets will follow its lead.

freedom.press/issues/wired...

#Iran Cyber Threat Intelligence Report: The Silent War Against Ethnic Minorities and Civil Society - Filterwatch This report examines the trends of cyberattacks, content management, digital rights violations, and patterns of arrests in the second half of 2024, based on data from the Digital Security Helpdesk (DS...

1/
🚨 New Report Alert: The Silent War Against Ethnic Minorities and Civil Society in Iran
Our #cybersecurity team has just published an in-depth report analyzing cyber #threats targeting civil society and ethnic minorities in #Iran during the second half of 2024. 🧵
filter.watch/english/2025...

🧵How to Stay Connected During Internet Shutdowns
1/3 📵Internet shutdowns are increasingly used as a tool of repression, especially during political unrest. From mobile data blocks to full blackouts, these disruptions affect ethnic minorities, journalists, and religious groups in different ways.👇

#YouTube: Iran’s Digital Battleground for Free Expression - Filterwatch This highlights that YouTube has emerged as a central platform for deep and serious discussions about the Islamic Republic, its future, and the regime's policies. But how do Iranian citizens access Yo...

3/3 The fight for unrestricted information continues. Read our full report to understand Iran’s battle against digital repression and how big tech & policymakers can help.
📎 filter.watch/english/2025...

1/5: The IRGFW report offers valuable insights into the internet censorship architecture in Iran. Drawing comparisons with China, it highlights how Iran has been inspired by the "Great Firewall of China," while adapting it to its own unique political and infrastructural conditions.

YouTube video by FilterBaan درباره روش‌های پیچیده #فیشینگ از جمله شیوه Quishing چه می‌دانید؟

درباره روش‌های پیچیده #فیشینگ از جمله شیوه Quishing چه می‌دانید؟

youtu.be/TgcR9hLtnEg

YouTube video by FilterBaan چگونه برای خاموشی‌های اینترنت آماده باشیم؟ (به زبان بلوچی)

۲/۱🔻آمادگی در برابر خاموشی‌های اينترنت نیازمند آموزش است. در این ویدیو، می‌توانید با بخشی از این آموزش‌ها به زبان بلوچی آشنا شوید:
youtu.be/XZuun8k-hbE

چالش‌های اکوسیستم دیجیتال ایران؛ مهاجرت نخبگان، کنترل دولتی و بحران زیرساختی - فیلتربان اکوسیستم فناوری ایران در سال‌های اخیر با چالش‌های متعددی از جمله تغییر در مالکیت استارتاپ‌ها، خروج سرمایه‌گذاران خصوصی، مهاجرت گسترده نیروی متخصص و افزایش نظارت و کنترل دولتی بر فضای دیجیتال مواجه بود...

افزایش نظارت دولت بر استارتاپ‌ها، تصویب قوانین سخت‌گیرانه رمزارز، مهاجرت گسترده نیروی متخصص و مشکلات زیرساختی، آینده نوآوری در ایران را با بحران مواجه کرده است.
filter.watch/2025/02/12/c...

Twitter has turned into a dumping ground. Regarding the Iranian community, it's interesting that all those who attacked members of this community in past years are now themselves being attacked and bullied. In Persian, we have a proverb that says: "This camel will lie down at your door too."

The #Debian Publicity Team will no longer post on X/Twitter. We took this decision since we feel X doesn't reflect Debian shared values as stated in our social contract, code of conduct and diversity statement.
micronews.debian.org/2025/1738154...

#The Internet in Iran: From Public Resource to Exclusive Commodity – Exploring Pricing and Access Challenges - Filterwatch The cost of internet access is a primary factor influencing citizens' ability to access free information, which is essential for the economic, social, and cultural development of any country. In Iran,...

1/2 🚨 Rising Internet Costs in Iran: A Growing Concern 🚨
Our latest report sheds light on the escalating internet costs in Iran and their impact on users:
📌 Digital Divide: Wealthier users afford high-speed services; lower-income individuals struggle with limited access.