Iranian state media said Tuesday that Iranian authorities had removed a ban on Google Play and Meta’s instant messaging app WhatsApp as a first step toward easing internet restrictions.
Although the Islamic Republic maintains some of the most stringent internet access regulations in the world, tech-savvy Iranians frequently use virtual private networks to get around government bans on US-based social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
“A positive majority vote has been reached to lift limitations on access to some popular foreign platforms such as WhatsApp and Google Play,” Iran’s official IRNA news agency reported Tuesday, citing a meeting led by President Masoud Pezeshkian on the subject.
“Today the first step in removing internet limitations… has been taken,” according to IRNA.
