Iran's internet and mobile phone networks have been nearly shut down completely since January 8, resulting in virtually no means of communicating. All financial transactions had ceased, all online shopping applications failed and even regular text messaging had failed entirely.
As protests continued to grow throughout the country, very little information about what was occurring inside Iran was available and much of that information was incoherent, difficult to gather and potentially harmful.
Yet, there were still barriers to accessing the censored information.
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How did footage flow out of Iran?
There was an underground network of activists, engineers and developers who were able to bypass the censorship barriers by using thousands of Starlink terminals that were secretly imported into the country. These satellite terminals allowed for the flow of images and video footage of security personnel shooting into the streets and desperate family members looking for their lost loved ones to the outside world.
Although this is not the first time Iran has imposed Internet shutdown and similar measures were deployed in 2019 and 2022 as well, the current blackout stands apart due to its scale and severity.
The January 8 disruptions marked a notable difference from past outages that had limited effects. In this case, the impact of the January 8 shutdown extended beyond just a part of Iran; the entire country (approximately 90 million people) saw a complete cutoff of their international connectivity!
The Iranians who had been using Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) for years to circumvent government censorship and have access to platforms like Instagram and YouTube failed to access anything as the effectiveness of VPNs was severely limited during this time period.
This is where Starlink emerged as the savior.
How did Starlink enter?
Starlink is a satellite internet service operated by SpaceX that provides Internet access directly from satellites to ground terminals, allowing users to avoid Iran's telecommunications infrastructure on land. Because Starlink does not rely on domestic cables or cell towers, it is considerably more difficult for the Iranian government to block than other forms of censorship.
Starlink has been instrumental in previous conflicts, but its effect on Iran has been particularly profound. Financial Express quoted Ahmad Ahmadian telling The New York Times that "the current internet blackout is the worst we've had so far".
Ahmad, an exiled Iranian activist who helped to smuggle Starlink satellites into Iran, described Starlink as "a lifeline".
According to The Times, "An estimated 50,000 Starlink terminals are believed to be operating inside Iran. Many are hidden on rooftops or in discreet locations."
