Iran’s "VPN mafia" blamed for delays on the lifting of Telegram ban – here's what we know

• An Iranian lawmaker is blaming the "VPN mafia" for Iran's Telegram ban
• Talks have reportedly taken place to lift the ban
• Iranians haven't been able to access Telegram without a VPN since 2018

Despite Iran being said to be ready to lift the 7-year-long Telegram ban, the messaging platform remains restricted in the country. The culprit? The economic interests linked to the sale of VPNs, according to an Iranian lawmaker.

As reported by Iran International, the Secretary of the parliament’s Industries and Mines Committee, Mostafa Pourdehghan, said that the "VPN mafia" is lobbying against the lifting of restrictions.

"The financial turnover of VPNs is about 50 trillion tomans (about $450 million), and beneficiaries hide behind sacred slogans such as national security to profit from continued filtering," he said.

The debate around the Telegram ban has been resurrected over the past week. Multiple reports suggest Iran is currently in talks with Telegram officials to find a compromise to bring Pavel Durov's platform back online.

"Some colleagues at the Communications Ministry have unofficially told us Telegram will be unblocked soon," said Pourdehghan, adding that a parliamentary "investigation and inspection into the backstory" of pressure against lifting the ban is now ongoing.

After imposing temporary restrictions in 2017, Iran blocked Telegram in May 2018 on national security grounds during a wave of strikes that flared up across the country. Citizens haven't been able to access the app without one of the best VPNs ever since.

Iran's VPN boom

For many years, Iran has enforced tight control over what citizens can and cannot access on the internet.

In December 2024, however, the government eased some of these internet restrictions when it brought WhatsApp and Google Play back online. Yet, most social media platforms remain banned in the country.

According to Surfshark’s Internet Shutdown Tracker, Facebook, X, and YouTube have been restricted since 2009 – over 15 years now. Instagram, which was blocked during the 2022 protests, and WhatsApp (again) also remain restricted at the time of writing.

Such a level of internet censorship has been pushing an increasing number of citizens towards circumventing software, like virtual private network (VPN) tools.

According to an August report from the Tehran E-Commerce Association, nearly 90% of Iranians now use a VPN to bypass widespread internet disruptions.

Iranian VPN usage continues to rise despite ongoing struggles. In February 2024, a law was enforced outlawing VPN usage without a legal permit. Iran continues to block VPN traffic as much as it can, too, topping the VPN censorship list across official app stores in 2024.

As a Proton spokesperson told Techradar, despite Iran blocking VPNs, the country remains in Proton VPN's top 10 list of free VPN users. "Many Iranians are cut off from global financial networks, making it difficult for them to pay for VPN services," said the Swiss-based firm.

Yet, while many popular VPN services, like Proton VPN, are developed by foreign providers, Iranian companies have also entered the market, intent on profiting from the increased VPN demand – an industry thought to earn approximately $500 million each year.

How likely is for Iran to lift Telegram ban?

Whether Iran's VPN industry is behind the push to keep internet filters in place or not, bringing Telegram back online appears to be challenging nonetheless.

Iran's conditions to lift the ban include an obligation for Telegram to limit ethnically provocative content, cooperate with Iran's judiciary on data requests, and block terrorist or anti–national security channels.

These demands seem to clash with Durov's free speech beliefs, but appear to be non-negotiable for Iranian authorities.

"If a platform does not accept internal regulations, it will not receive a license," said Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, as reported by Iran International.

It therefore looks as though people in Iran will need to continue using a VPN to access Telegram for some time.

We suggest checking out our best free VPN page to download only the most secure freebies, or give a look at today's best VPN deals if you want to go premium.

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