While millions of citizens in Iran remain under pressure from internet filtering, shutdowns, and disruptions, reports indicate the official sale of “Pro” SIM cards offering unfiltered internet access. This expensive and limited service effectively transforms free access from a public right into a special privilege for a select group.
The state-run Shargh newspaper reported that the service, branded as “Pro Internet,” is being offered through one of the country’s major telecom operators. In its advertisements, it is described as international internet access without filtering or disconnection, available to a limited group.
The story began with an image circulating on social media—an advertisement bearing the explicit message: “Goodbye to VPNs and access to free and unfiltered internet for colleagues holding a business license.”
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The advertisement introduces international internet that is activated directly on the SIM card without filtering or disruption and is currently available only through one of the country’s major operators.
Shargh reported that after following up as a customer, the operator’s marketing department sent a product introduction file along with a draft service request letter. This indicates that the offering of Pro Internet is not a black-market initiative but rather an official and organized process.
According to published information, access to this service is limited to the first 500 applicants. The activation fee has been announced as 21,780,000 rials (approximately 14 dollars), a figure that effectively places this type of access beyond the reach of a large portion of society from the outset. However, the discrimination does not end there.
Under the details of the service, regular internet traffic is calculated at 80,000 rials per gigabyte, while access to filtered websites and platforms—including social media networks and widely used global services—costs 400,000 rials per gigabyte.
This means that the same filtering long imposed on the public under the pretext of security and cultural considerations has now been turned into a paid premium service.
Shargh wrote that its reporter’s investigation shows the company providing Pro Internet is a subsidiary of one of the country’s major telecom operators and offers the service entirely officially, with a legal identity verification process.
The product catalog emphasizes that Pro Internet is designed to support commercial and international activities and is presented as a specialized solution for organizations, companies, guilds, and cooperatives.
The catalog lists features such as stability even under special conditions and international internet disruptions, full access to global resources, use of a sanctions-bypass service, activation without the need for additional software, availability on both personal and corporate SIM cards, and integrated management of organizational SIM cards.
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It also explains the registration process through a dedicated platform and identity verification via a unified gateway—facilities that effectively deepen the divide between ordinary and privileged users.
This type of user segregation and tiered access is what critics have long referred to as “tiered internet.” In this model, specific groups, with authorization from state institutions, have access to a level of internet that is blocked or restricted for the general public.
The idea of tiered internet access was first raised during the administration of Hassan Rouhani, a former president of Iran’s regime. During that period, the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology provided unfiltered internet to certain journalists close to the government, signaling the early formation of this approach.
In November 2022, the Special Digital Economy Task Force under the government of former Iranian regime president Ebrahim Raisi approved regulations promising unfiltered internet access to freelancers approved by the authorities. Critics viewed the move as another step toward formalizing a multi-tiered internet structure.
Contradiction with the government’s official promises
The official entry of a major telecom operator into providing tiered internet under the name Pro Internet comes despite repeated statements by officials in the government of Iranian regime president Masoud Pezeshkian that they do not believe in tiered internet and that internet access should be available to all people.
On July 18, 2025, Fatemeh Mohajerani, spokesperson for Pezeshkian’s government, rejected the idea of tiered internet and said: “The government’s approach is free internet, but in times of crisis, special facilities must be given to those with special needs.”
However, the experience of special internet access during the 12-day war, unfiltered access in some universities, the activation of “white internet” for specific groups, and now the official sale of Pro SIM cards indicate that this policy is effectively becoming institutionalized.
In January of this year, Iran faced one of the longest periods of widespread internet shutdowns and disruptions in its history. The blackout began on January 8 and, according to reports, lasted for more than one month.
This communication blackout coincided with a wave of repression and widespread reports of the street killing of protesters.
The blackout, along with the disruption of other communication channels, also paralyzed a large portion of the digital economy.
Under such conditions, the internet in Iran is no longer merely a tool for communication and access to information; it has become a new dividing line among citizens, determining who remains connected at all times and who, in critical moments, is left behind the wall of filtering and disconnection.
