Iranian lawmakers have drafted a new bill that aims to intensify online censorship and restrict internet access in the country.

The Cyberspace Regulation Plan is a revised version of an earlier draft law, which authorities abandoned after it sparked fierce criticism in the country of about 90 million people.

The proposed new legislation excludes some of the most controversial provisions of the previous bill – the Cyberspace Protection Bill – but critics say the intent remains the same.

The new bill was introduced to lawmakers on August 26, although it is not clear when it will be put to a vote.

Concentration of authority

The new bill would strengthen state control over the internet and give the Supreme Council for Cyberspace authority over the country's internet gateways. This council is responsible for monitoring and filtering the internet in Iran and its members are appointed by the Islamic Republic's supreme leader.

“The Supreme Cyberspace Council is at the same time a rule-maker, a legislator, a regulator and, in a sense, a judge,” Puyesh Azizeddin, an Iranian cybersecurity expert based in Slovenia, told RFE/RL’s Radio Farda. “The plan has concentrated all of these powers in the council.”

Azizeddin said the proposed legislation would shift authority away from the Government – ​​primarily from the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology – and limit Iranians' ability to hold decision-makers accountable.

The bill would require internet service providers to verify the identities of users, a measure that would undermine online anonymity. Online platforms could face fines or have their licenses revoked for violations.

"The Iranian user is left with a very limited and strictly monitored internet," he said.

Several articles of the Draft Law on the Protection of Cyberspace, which the authorities abandoned, have been removed from the new draft law, including the criminalization of the use of virtual private networks (VPNs), which hide the location of internet users and enable them to access sites blocked in the country.

The other articles have remained unchanged.

Foreign online platforms, if the new bill were to be passed, would face the requirement to have a physical presence in Iran. Domestic platforms would face heavy fines and license revocation for any violations.

"This is not a new plan," Azizeddin said. "Every time it withdraws, it transforms under a new name and comes back."

Will it become law?

The bill was drafted amid the ongoing war between Iran and the United States, which began in February. The conflict has killed dozens of senior Iranian officials and strengthened hardliners' grip on power in Iran.

The war has led to a tightening of security in Iran, with security forces deployed in major cities and government critics arrested. Authorities also cut off internet access for nearly three months, one of the longest internet outages in modern history.

Observers say hardline conservatives are taking advantage of wartime conditions to impose tighter controls on the internet.

But the new draft law has prompted serious opposition from some parts of the Government, including the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology.

The administration of reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian has repeatedly appeared willing to respond to Iranians' calls for easing internet restrictions, although the final decision on the matter rests with the supreme leader.