Tech Companies Are Complicit in Censoring Iran Protests
The world is witnessing the biggest protest movement in Iran since the 2009 Green Movement uprising. Freedom of expression—which includes secure internet access—is the bloodline of democracy, but with the internet shut down, Telegram’s more than 40 million users in Iran have essentially had their communication cut off. But it’s not just the regime that is stripping Iranians of their digital freedom: American technology companies that limit Iranian users’ access to their services—the result, usually, of an overly cautious interpretation of US sanctions—are also, in effect, restricting internet access and hindering free expression. Many affected companies rightly fear that if they provide services to the average user in Iran, the Iranian government and sanctioned industries could also gain access to these technologies, which could have far-reaching legal and financial implications for the companies involved. Despite years of advocacy by Iranian NGOs outside the country, as well as licenses from the US Office of Foreign Assets Control that exempt certain services and transactions from the sanction policies, tech companies continue to deny services to Iranians that could be crucial to free and open communications.
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