Iranian government tightening grip on cyberspace activity

The Iranian government in a new bid to hold a firmer grip on cyber activities has required media activity on social networks to apply for permissions.

“Those who conduct press activity on social media are required to apply for permits from the Supreme Council on Cyberspace,” Abolhassan Firouzabadi, the council’s secretary, told IRNA news agency June 27.

“An attempt is being made to regulate press activity on social media. So, those who do media business on the networks should prepare themselves for applying for permits,” the official stated.

He underlined that the media are needed to observe “religious, moral, and legal requirements” as they promote themselves on social networks.

“The entire messaging networks in the country are required to store their databases for one year,” he said, hoping that by doing so, they will “prove their adherence to our country’s regulations.”

He also said that Iran is preparing to launch three home-made social networks for Iranian users.

For security reasons, the Iranian government has restricted access to some social networks, including Facebook, Twitter, and Google+, for "inappropriate content".

Recently Tehran asked the Russian creators of the Telegram messaging service, which a lot of Iranians use, to store Iranian users’ databases inside Iran, but Telegram refused to cooperate.

/By Trend/