Iran unveils plan for tighter internet rules to promote local platforms

One or multiple VPNs can be found on the phones of most Iranians to navigate the heavily restricted internet landscape [Vahid Salemi/AP Photo]

Tehran, Iran – A new regulatory directive from Iran’s top internet governing body shows how authorities hope to steer Iranians away from foreign platforms and turn them towards local ones.

Iran’s top internet policymaking body released a directive earlier this week that stipulates new rules with potentially wide-ranging ramifications for the country’s already constrained internet landscape, which the agency says were approved by Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei.