Iran further limits internet access

Medianetwork reports:

Access to the Internet’s most-used sites and tools is being choked in Iran at a politically charged period, blocking communication channels for local businesses, bank clients, scientists and foreign media.

Attempts to get on Facebook, Gmail, Yahoo and foreign news pages were either met with an Iranian page saying in Farsi that “Access to this page is a violation of computer crime laws” or the connection was slowed to such an extent to make it nearly impossible.

The restrictions add to the online censorship that authorities have long imposed in the Islamic republic.

Until now, sophisticated Internet users had been able to get around the blocks by using software known as a Virtual Private Network (VPN) - the sale of which is illegal in Iran.

Since last week, though, even most VPNs offered no solution. Internet service providers (ISPs), under the control of the state, seemed to be targeting the Internet’s most popular social networks and communication sites...