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Iran faces severe internet blackouts affecting its population of more than 90 million as the country’s conflict with the US and Israel continues.
The country has now spent 48 hours in an internet blackout, according to data from independent internet watchdog NetBlocks posted at 2:35 a.m. ET on Monday, it showed. About 1% contact at normal level.
NetBlocks attributed the blackout to a “regime-imposed” nationwide internet shutdown, although the country’s government has not commented.
“Shutdowns are a go-to tactic for the administration, with a previous instance in January lasting several weeks and masking severe human rights abuses,” NetBlocks said.
January’s darkness came amid widespread protests in the country. The Iranian government has a history of shutting down the Internet during times of civil unrest and conflict.
Internet analyst Doug Madori, in a post on X, suggested that the small amount of Internet activity may be due to the government’s new whitelist system, which creates exemptions for groups loyal to the government.
US-Israeli cyber attacks
However, reports indicate that US and Israeli actors have conducted cyber attacks on Iran’s Internet infrastructure in addition to airstrikes.
According to a report by Reuters, US-Israeli actors have targeted several government-aligned Iranian news websites with hacks and cyberattacks.
Badesaba Calendar, a popular religious calendar app with more than 5 million downloads, was also compromised, the report added, displaying warnings telling the armed forces to “lay down arms and join the people” and “it’s a time of reckoning”.
US Cyber Command did not respond to requests for comment. CNBC was unable to reach Badesaba’s owner for comment.
In January, Iranian state television was reportedly hacked, briefly showing speeches by US President Donald Trump and the exiled son of Iran’s last shah calling on the public to revolt.
Cyber revenge?
As Iran retaliates with its own strikes and drone strikes against US and allied targets in the Middle East, some analysts have warned that Iran-aligned groups may also resort to cyber attacks.
In a statement shared with CNBC, CrowdStrike’s head of countermeasures operations, Adam Meyers, said the firm is “already seeing consistent activity with Iran-aligned threat actors and hacktivist groups conducting reconnaissance and launching (denial of service) attacks.”
“These behaviors precede more aggressive operations,” Meyers said.
“In past conflicts, Tehran’s cyber actors have aligned their activity with broader strategic objectives of increasing pressure and visibility on targets including energy, critical infrastructure, finance, telecommunications and health.”
