Iran testing advanced surveillance tech to enforce hijab in Isfahan, says watchdog

Local authorities are deploying advanced surveillance technologies in Isfahan to identify and threaten women who defy the country’s strict hijab regulations, according to research by internet watchdog Filterwatch.

The NGO, which specializes in internet freedoms in Iran and the Middle East, released a report last week detailing new technologies and tools allegedly used by authorities in Isfahan, Iran's third most populous city, for hijab enforcement.

These include International Mobile Subscriber Identity-Catchers (IMSI-Catchers), data from contactless card readers, and urban surveillance cameras.

IMSI-Catchers—also known as fake cell towers—can intercept and track mobile phone communications by impersonating legitimate towers. A portable fake cell tower carried by a hijab enforcer, for instance, can connect to the cell phone of a woman not wearing the hijab on the street and identify her number.

“The combined use of IMSI-Catchers, contactless card readers, and surveillance cameras—along with access to government databases and the cooperation of telecom operators—has created a powerful, multilayered tool to systematically violate women’s rights through identification, tracking, and intimidation,” Filterwatch said in its report.

Stricter hijab enforcement in Isfahan

So far, this surveillance-driven enforcement strategy appears limited to Isfahan, a conservative bastion where hardliners have pushed for stricter hijab enforcement—even after the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) temporarily shelved a controversial new 'hijab and chastity law' in September to avoid sparking unrest if it was brought into effect.

The law has been slammed globally by rights groups and the UN which said it amounted to gender apartheid.

In December, Iranian media unveiled the details of the new law which had been kept secret. Stricter measures against women who unveil in public would include travel bans, social media bans, prison sentences, and lashes. It also criminalizes anyone promoting the encouragement of hijab defiance.

“The Isfahan case is a serious alarm bell about the escalation of digital authoritarianism and the use of technology as a weapon against the rights of citizens, especially women, in Iran,” Nima Akbarpour, a tech expert and filmmaker, warned in a post on X.

Warning text messages reveal extent of data access

In recent weeks, dozens of women reported on social media that they received threatening text messages after visiting public places in Isfahan during the Nowruz (Iranian New Year) holidays in late March as the crackdown escalates.

Screenshots shared online show messages from various state entities, including the provincial branch of the Office for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, the Department of Justice, and the police.

The first two agencies warned recipients of potential legal prosecution should the violation of hijab rules be repeated. The third message, from the police, informed recipients that “evidence of the crime” had been submitted to the judiciary.

The messages included the women’s full names and specified the exact locations where the alleged violations occurred—indicating the authorities had access to their personal and location data.

In some cases, the same messages were reportedly sent to the recipient’s husband or father, demonstrating the extent of data collected.

While reports of such warnings first emerged in June 2023, local authorities only recently confirmed the practice after it appears to have become more widespread.

Last week, Amir-Hossein Bankipour, an ultra-hardline lawmaker from the province, said, "[Sending text messages] began some time ago, and its impact has already been observed, with approximately 80–90 percent of recipients complying after receiving the text message. This method has proven effective without causing social tension".

Public defiance continues

Public acts of defiance against the hijab have grown to new heights in the past year despite authorities' threats of severe legal crackdowns, occasional violence against women on the streets, and measures such as impounding vehicles if unveiled women are spotted in them.

A nationwide movement against compulsory hijab intensified following the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the morality police in September 2022. Her death sparked protests across Iran under the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom," shifting public sentiment decisively against compulsory hijab.

Many women now refuse to wear the compulsory head covering, long tunics, and trousers as dictated by the country's Shariah law. They are also now often seen singing and dancing in public in defiance of the religious establishment.