Mobile App Designed By Iranian Regime For Reporting Unveiled Women

The Iranian regime has developed a mobile application designed to streamline the process of reporting unveiled women in urban areas.

The application, known as Nazer (surveillant), is being made available to individuals who collaborate with a government committee, effectively serving as informants for the regime.

According to a report published in Shargh newspaper and quoted by Mohsen Borhani, a legal expert and lawyer, some individuals have equipped their mobile devices with the Nazer app, which enables them to "patrol the streets and report unveiled women."

The app empowers informants to directly input information, such as license plate numbers, into the system. The consequences of these systematic reports include the issuance of "unveiling notifications" sent via text messages to vehicle owners, often resulting in the impoundment of their vehicles.

Individuals who express their willingness to cooperate with the committee are required to attend brief training sessions. Upon successful completion of these courses, they are granted access to the application, allowing them to actively participate in the surveillance.

It is important to note that the information concerning vehicles and their locations is manually entered into the application without any form of verification. This has raised concerns about the potential misuse of the app and has given rise to a systematic approach to harassing citizens.

The practice of sending hijab notifications to vehicle owners began approximately four years ago, with authorities urging citizens to report instances of non-compliance with mandatory hijab in vehicles through text message reports.