Iran offline: The longest internet shutdown ever imposed by a country

"Iran has been under a digital blackout for 80 days the time that has passed since the United States and Israel launched their war against the Islamic Republic decreed by the authorities for security reasons, preventing citizens from having normal access to the internet. This difficult-to-circumvent blockade is increasingly complicating daily life, making remote working impossible, cutting off communication, and severely limiting access to information in a country of 92 million inhabitants."

"This internet blackout is now the longest of its kind (imposed nationwide by a country's government) on record, according to NetBlocks, an organization that monitors internet traffic and censorship, which reported the information on Wednesday, the 75th day of the shutdown. NetBlocks director Alp Toker told EFE that this is the longest nationwide blackout on record in a digitally connected society, surpassing Myanmar's blackout in February 2021 (which lasted 72 days) and the one Sudan has been experiencing for several weeks."

"Thousands of citizens try to circumvent the restrictions with illegal solutions, such as the use of alternative technologies, while the regime tries to establish a new model, a substitute for the network called Internet Pro, which is much more limited, restricted to certain groups, and expensive. For Sara, an English teacher who depends entirely on online work with students outside Iran, the internet is not just infrastructure; it is her livelihood."

"During one of the recent outages, when connectivity collapsed, she closed her laptop and took a bus to Armenia, one of the few countries offering visa-free entry to Iranians. Even though my hostel in Yerevan [the Armenian capital] is in a basement, with no natural light, and I share a room in my 40s, paying $400 a month, at least when I open my laptop and have internet, I'm no longer anxious, she says, speaking under a pseudonym."

Iran has faced an 80-day nationwide internet blackout imposed for security reasons, limiting citizens’ normal access to the internet. The shutdown has increasingly complicated daily life by preventing remote work, cutting off communication, and restricting access to information across a population of 92 million. NetBlocks reports it is the longest nationwide government-imposed blackout on record, surpassing prior shutdowns in Myanmar and ongoing disruptions in Sudan. Many citizens attempt to bypass restrictions using illegal alternative technologies. Authorities are also developing a replacement network called Internet Pro, which is more limited, restricted to certain groups, and expensive. For people relying on online work, outages can force drastic measures, including leaving the country to regain connectivity.

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