Jan 15, 2026 13:10:00

What is the current situation in Iran, where smuggled Starlink equipment is being used to compete with government communications regulations?

As Iranian protests sparked by economic collapse and other factors have been ongoing since late December 2025, the Iranian government has

implemented the strictest internet shutdown in history . While the satellite internet service Starlink has been affected by the shutdown , it has helped many Iranians maintain a modicum of connection with the outside world amidst isolation.

Free Starlink access for Iran seen as game changer for demonstrators getting their message out | Mint
https://www.livemint.com/technology/free-starlink-access-for-iran-seen-as-game-changer-for-demonstrators-getting-their-message-out-11768395754683.html

An ecosystem of smuggled tech holds Iran's last link to the outside world | Iran | The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/13/ecosystem-smuggled-tech-iran-last-link-outside-world-internet

Starlink tries to stay online in Iran as regime jams signals during protests - Ars Technica
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/01/starlink-tries-to-stay-online-in-iran-as-regime-jams-signals-during-protests/

How Iran switched off the internet
https://www.ft.com/content/5d848323-84a9-4512-abd2-dd09e0a786a3

While internet blackouts have been confirmed across Iran, a small number of Iranians have managed to stay online, posting photos of bodies lying in the streets of Kahrizak, a southern suburb of Tehran, and sharing videos of Iranians at a funeral chanting 'Death to Ayatollah Khamenei.' According to Amir Rashidi, an Iranian digital rights expert, these videos and messages are being sent through online tools designed to circumvent censorship, including Telegram proxies and a browser called Ceno . The most important of these is Starlink, which connects people to the internet via thousands of satellites in low-earth orbit.

Starlink devices began being smuggled into Iran in 2022 amid protests against Iran's mandatory headscarf law. This was after Elon Musk, CEO of Starlink's provider, SpaceX, lobbied the Biden administration to exempt Starlink from Iranian sanctions. Since then, it's estimated that more than 50,000 units have been smuggled into the country, with up to 100,000 users in the country.

However, the Iranian government is not happy with this and will outlaw the import, sale, and use of Starlink by 2025. It also considers Starlink use to be espionage in support of the United States and Israel, and will impose the death penalty in the worst case scenario. Even during the recent demonstrations, the Iranian government has been seen disrupting Starlink communications, using tools developed for electronic warfare to jam signals across the region and flying drones over rooftops to search for telltale satellite antennas.

Why Starlink can't bypass Iran's complete internet shutdown - GIGAZINE

At the time of writing, a small number of people secretly using Starlink can connect online, but in areas with heavy radio interference, it's nearly impossible to do anything more than send messages. Furthermore, it's technically possible to track the specific frequency signals used by Starlink devices, suggesting that enforcement may become increasingly strict in the future.

Starlink was temporarily made free thanks to the efforts of local organizations, and a cat-and-mouse game with the Iranian government continues, with updates being implemented to reduce packet loss. President Donald Trump is also enthusiastic about Starlink's aggressive expansion, saying, 'I want to make Starlink available in Iran. I'm going to talk to Elon. As you know, he's very good at this kind of thing and has a great company.' It's been reported that President Trump and Musk later met.

The Financial Times, a business newspaper, points out that the Iranian government's recent communications blackout is 'the implementation of a long-standing plan.' For about a decade, the Iranian government has been building a ' National Information Network (NIN) ' to restrict access to foreign web content and allow only government-approved websites to be viewed. However, past experiments have failed, and there have been voices within the government warning that 'next time, they will be forced to shut down everything.' This time, Iran appears to have done just that.

The latest shutdown is so thorough that even government officials and journalists who had been issued 'white SIM cards' that essentially allowed free access to the internet are now unable to access the internet.