Arrest of 1200 Individuals in Tehran Under the Title of 'Cyber Criminals'

Hosseini Sajadi-Nia, the Chief of Tehran Police, announced the arrest of 1,200 individuals in Tehran under the label of what he called 'cyber criminals' during the first eight months of the year 1395 (2016). According to the Mizan news agency, affiliated with Iran's judiciary, Brigadier General Sajadi-Nia also mentioned the discovery of over 77% of the cases formed in the capital's cyber police in the past eight months, stating: '986 male suspects and 298 female suspects are among these cases.' The Chief of Tehran Police described the crimes attributed to the detainees as 'distortion of information, dissemination of obscene audio and video, sharing private images and videos of individuals, spreading falsehoods, threats and extortion, internet harassment, hacking computer systems, selling unauthorized goods, immoral websites, unauthorized matchmaking, illegal withdrawals from individuals' financial accounts, fraud, and phishing.' This news comes at a time when criticism of the cyber space among some traditional clerics in Iran and close associates of the Supreme Leader has increased in the past month, with calls for more restrictions on internet usage in Iran. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, has referred to cyberspace as a 'real battlefield' and advised clerics and students to be armed and prepared for this arena. Ali-Asghar Abadi Nik, the Chief of Public Security and Information Police in Hormozgan province, also reported on Wednesday, December 22, the arrest of 32 individuals managing Telegram channels and social media accounts. The ISNA news agency quoted the Hormozgan Police news site, evaluating these arrests as part of a plan to combat cyber criminals in the province. Abadi Nik emphasized: 'Experts from the Cyber Information Center of this police, with information coverage in cyberspace and around-the-clock efforts in collaboration with other operational units, successfully identified 78 channels, groups, and accounts on social media.' According to this police official, the charges against the arrested individuals included 'spreading falsehoods, disturbing public order, creating fear and panic among people, promoting anti-cultural content, disseminating immoral materials, and unauthorized advertising in public spaces.' Hosseini Sajadi-Nia, in another part of his interview with Mizan news agency, stated: 'In the first eight months of this year, 871 cases related to economic crimes that occurred in cyberspace have been formed.' Of these cases, 746 have been discovered, and 247 male and 75 female suspects have been arrested. According to Iranian law enforcement officials, these individuals had made 'unauthorized internet withdrawals' from users' bank accounts. Previously, Kamal Hadianfar, the Chief of Cyber Police, had reported in mid-December this year the arrest of 184 individuals connected to 'online gambling networks' in Iran and the identification of '3,323 gambling channels' on 'Telegram.' The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran had stated two weeks ago that the Cyber Police summoned managers of several Telegram channels and subsequently 'hacked' and removed these channels from access. Accordingly, these channels had between 300,000 to 500,000 members, and most of their content was 'entertainment and non-political.' The issue of social media activity has repeatedly been a topic of discussion among the government of Hassan Rouhani and institutions under the Supreme Leader in recent years. The United Nations and human rights advocates have repeatedly criticized the arrest of internet activists, accusing Iranian officials of violating freedom of information. In this context, social media channels with more than 5,000 members 'must obtain a license,' the Attorney General's harsh criticism of the Ministry of Culture: 'Death to freedom' of users on the internet, continued concern about internet content and freedom in cyberspace, several popular Telegram channels have been 'hacked and removed from access' after their managers were summoned, and the Minister of Interior has called for the judiciary to deal with 'virtual laxity.'