Iran’s government, not wanting to be outdone by other censorship-crazed nations like China, North Korea, and Great Britain, are taking things to the next level – they are cutting off the internet, permanently. As always, they only have their citizens’ best interests at heart.

At this point it looks to be a two-part process. In May the Iranian government will block popular sites like Google, Hotmail and Yahoo but users will still have access to the internet, in August however things get real and Iranians will be permanently denied access to the internet. In its place will be Iran’s heavily monitored intranet. Iran will set up replacements for the aforementioned sites, including Iran Mail and Iran Search Engine. Users will have to register with the government and undergo a screening process to gain access to these services.

The government has already started the registration procedure to apply for procuring Iran Mail ID, which mandates authentic information pertaining to a person’s identity, including national ID, address and full name. Registration will be approved only after verifying it against the government data on the particular applicant.

The new plans are all part of Iran’s quest for “clean internet”, as was outlined in a statement by their minister for Information and Communications Technology, Reza Taghipour. Speaking last March, he claimed that the internet “promotes crime, disunity, unhealthy moral content, and atheism,” and that his goal to was to eradicate the online “scourge”. Confirming the government’s deadline, he said the following, “all Internet Service Providers (ISP) should only present National Internet by August.”

Once Iran have perfected their Western-influence-blocking recipe they plan to “export” it to other nations wishing to do the same. Thanks guys, can’t wait!

[Source: IBT, The Register]