As Iranian authorities restore some online services after crushing antigovernment demonstrations, they are using a technological dragnet to target attendees of the protests.
Antigovernment protesters blocked a road last month in Tehran. Iran is using facial recognition and phone data to track and detain people involved in political opposition activities.
It’s unclear what effect the change will have on Russia’s ability to wage war, but Russian military bloggers said troops were experiencing internet outages that hampered frontline communications.
A Ukrainian soldier preparing a Starlink satellite internet system in the Donetsk region in 2024. Russians have been evading export restrictions to smuggle in Starlink devices and send them to the front.
The shutdown of online discourse within Iran has allowed both the government and its critics to flood social media outside the country with disinformation campaigns and fake images.
Activists spent years preparing for a communications blackout in Iran, smuggling in Starlink satellite internet systems and making digital shutdowns harder for the authorities to enforce.
Under a near-total communications blackout, users of Elon Musk’s satellite service have gotten online without paying, organizations that work on tech issues said.
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