Iran Iran. Iranian authorities took an important step in easing the country's strict internet controls by lifting the ban on Meta's WhatsApp and Google Play on Tuesday, Iranian state media reported. The move is the first step in easing restrictions on foreign platforms in the Islamic republic, which is known for having some of the strictest controls on internet access globally.
The decision was taken after a meeting chaired by President Massoud Pezeshkian, where a “positive majority vote” was received to lift the ban on several popular foreign platforms, including WhatsApp and Google Play. Iran's Minister of Information and Communications Technology Sattar Hashemi confirmed the development, calling it “the first step in lifting Internet restrictions.” In a country where many social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube are blocked, Iranians often use virtual private networks ( By using VPN) you can bypass these restrictions. Social media were widely used during anti-government protests in September, bringing increased attention to Iran's Internet censorship policies.
The US government has previously called on tech companies to help users avoid online censorship in countries like Iran. The lifting of these restrictions signals a possible change in Iran's approach towards online restrictions, although further changes to the country's Internet policies are uncertain. The move is being seen as a positive development, but questions remain about What remains is whether Iran will extend these exemptions to other popular platforms and whether this will lead to further increases in Internet freedom in the future.
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