While the Islamic Republic has drawn international condemnation for restricting Iranians’ access to major portions of the international internet, key government and private-sector websites have quietly been made unavailable to those outside of Iran (so-called “geo-blocking”). This development makes it more difficult for journalists, human rights organizations, academics, and governments to understand what is happening in a country that is already among the world’s least transparent. The precise reason for the restrictions is not clear, but the phenomenon may be connected to Iran’s continuing efforts to create a National Information Network (NIN) – an Iranian intranet designed to control the internet in a manner similar to China.
While it is difficult the assess the size and scope of the geo-blocking, the number of Iranian sites unavailable outside of Iran has increased steadily in recent years. The table below summarizes some of the major websites that have been geo-blocked. The most recent date a functioning archive for a particular site was created in the Wayback Machine, the internet’s largest index of website captures, serves as a proxy to determine the approximate timeframe in which a site was cut off. The Wayback Machine’s automated systems appear largely unable to circumvent Iran’s geo-blocks.
Table 1: Selected Websites Restricted to Iranian IP Addresses
Address
Website Description
Last Functioning Archive Found
www.majlis.ir
Iran’s Parliament, the Majles
September 2022
www.cbi.ir
Central Bank of Iran
August 2022
www.ifb.ir
The Fara Bourse, a major securities market
July 2022
www.isaar.ir
The Martyrs Foundation, a U.S.-sanctioned charitable organization
May 2022
www.qmb.ir
Mehr Bank, a U.S.-sanctioned bank
April 2022
www.reorazavi.org
The Imam Reza Foundation’s Economic Organization, a major economic entity sanctioned by the U.S.
June 2020
www.eadl.ir
Iran’s Judiciary
May 2016, with one functioning capture in January 2021.
www.ict.gov.ir
Iran’s Communications Ministry
November 2022
The geo-blocking of Iranian websites spans various sectors, including government entities, quasi-governmental entities like Iran’s powerful foundations or “bonyads,” and private entities including virtually all banks. The geo-blocking of websites is most frequently found in the government sector, however.
These restrictions hamper the ability of Iran watchers to access important information. The Majlis (Parliament) website, for example, is an authoritative source for bills, laws, and publishes influential and revealing analytical reports. The Central Bank website posts economic data; news and analyses; and banking regulations. The Judiciary website contains news and information about the structure and functioning of the country’s justice system, whose institutions and personnel are subject to human rights-related sanctions.
The timing of the geo-blocking and the widespread accessibility of other Iranian websites mean it is unlikely this geo-blocking is the result of a single blanket policy decision. The majority of Iranian websites — including most government pages – still remain accessible. The various websites also appear to have been geo-blocked at different times.
Some of the restrictions could be related to Iran’s long-held goal of creating the NIN. In July 2022, Iran’s Central Bank ordered banks to block access to their online banking systems from outside the country. Leading business newspaper Donya-ye Eqtesad theorized it was the start of the NIN’s rollout and noted that in order to access banking services, users inside would now need to turn off the VPNs that are widely used to bypass Iran’s restrictions on certain foreign websites. Another news website explicitly said that the NIN process “and the separating of international and domestic traffic” had left Iranians outside of Iran unable to access various websites.
The restrictions on access may also be related to information or cyber security. Iran may want to limit non-Iranians’ ability to use Iranian political, economic, or defense information against the Islamic Republic or to ward off cyberattacks. Iran has long denied access to some sensitive sites. The Defense Ministry’s main website, for instance, was removed from the web in approximately 2018, and other defense entities have likewise taken down their pages. The Central Bank’s stated reason for ordering banks to block access to non-Iran IPs was to protect against cyber attacks.
Whatever the reason, Iran’s leadership appears determined to take more control over access to information. While this may be largely aimed as its own people, Iran specialists should be prepared to adjust their own approaches to monitoring the country.
Figure 1: Error message when attempting to connect to the Majles websites from outside of Iran
Sources available upon request.
