Hemmati: Internet-based businesses beset by huge losses due to filtering
Abdolnaser Hemmati, the Iranian economy minister, elaborated on his reasons for supporting the lifting of Internet filtering in a post on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), saying that Internet-based businesses suffer enormous losses due to filtering.
He wrote that 80 percent of Iranian people use virtual private networks (VPNs), and the restrictions have caused tens of thousands of billions of tomans in loss to online businesses, ILNA reported on Tuesday.
He wrote in a Persian-language post on X, “Why do I, as the Minister of Economy, advocate for lifting the restrictions on Internet access?”
He added, “There is no doubt that cyberspace in the country needs to be managed wisely, but censorship is by no means a prudent way to manage it.”
Asking as to why censorship is not wise, Hemmati responded in the post that 80 percent of our people use VPNs, creating a massive black market in the national economy under the label of VPN sales, which, according to some reports, rivals the country’s official communications economy.
The damage inflicted on online businesses amounts to tens of thousands of billions of tomans, affecting the livelihoods, incomes, and services of significant groups of people who rely on social media platforms, he noted.
Stressing that filtering poses a serious threat to the security of the digital economy, endangering the country’s Internet infrastructure, Hemmati said, “Restricting people’s legitimate freedoms negatively impacts the country’s progress and development. Thus, censorship acts as a barrier to national advancement.”