The Islamic Republic's Use of the 'Monitor' App to Track Ambulances and Identify Protesters

Filterban, an organization active in the field of internet access rights in Iran, states that the government app 'Monitor' is used not only for monitoring the enforcement of mandatory hijab but also for 'monitoring ambulances' and identifying participants in protests. In a report on Tuesday, October 8, it noted that ambulances are among the vehicles that can be reported for violations, indicating that enforcing hijab laws is a priority for government officials 'even in medical emergencies.' Filterban pointed out that initially, 'Monitor' was designed for reporting hijab violations in vehicles, but now it also controls behaviors such as alcohol consumption, eating during Ramadan, and public protests. The report states that the Monitor app is part of the government's policies 'to suppress lifestyle choices that do not align with its laws.' According to its research, the latest version of 'Monitor' has been developed for increased surveillance of citizens' lives, allowing for the registration of vague concepts such as 'behaviors contrary to public norms.' Furthermore, the new 'Monitor' seeks to identify participants in protests and suppress the freedom of peaceful assembly. The report describes the 'Monitor' app as a powerful surveillance tool with extensive capabilities for monitoring and controlling citizens, specifically targeting women and aiming to criminalize a wide range of different aspects of citizens' lifestyles, as well as suppressing dissenters, critics, and civil political opponents. Thus, it violates rights enshrined in human rights documents and even the laws of the Islamic Republic. Filterban also noted that the Monitor app is not available to the general public in app stores and is distributed through specific channels such as the police website and Iranian messaging platforms like 'Eitaa' among specific individuals and supporters of the regime, indicating a targeted use of it. The organization highlighted that the updated version of Monitor criminalizes peaceful protest actions and dissenting voices, emphasizing that this approach reflects the government's policy of disregarding citizens' rights to hold peaceful protests and evaluating them as 'disruptions to public order.' According to Filterban, the Monitor app was initially designed to allow its users, including law enforcement and approved volunteers like hijab monitors, to report 'individuals violating mandatory hijab laws while driving.' Now, this app can identify the exact location of passengers in a vehicle and categorize them into three roles: driver, front passenger, and rear passenger, which 'makes reporting violations more accurate and allows for more precise punishment of citizens.' The report states that the new version of 'Monitor' contains a long list of all car models available in Iran. The Monitor app was designed and produced by the 'Rescue Research and Development Company,' affiliated with the Cooperative Foundation of the Islamic Republic's Law Enforcement Force (NAJA), for use by government security forces. NAJA and several of its officials were sanctioned by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control in October 2019. Previously, in continuation of the Islamic Republic's efforts to control citizens, Mehdi Omidvar, spokesman for the Iranian Chamber of Guilds, announced on October 3 that based on a directive from the Public Places Supervision Unit of the Law Enforcement Command, a 'Public Places Visual Monitoring System' has been established, allowing Iranian security and intelligence officials to visually monitor commercial and service units. According to the announcement of 'Sepitam,' which stands for 'Public Places Visual Monitoring System,' this system is responsible for 'cleaning public places and other urban ancillary activities (excluding the municipality)' and operates based on 'police visual monitoring regulations for public places, special for security level one.' Previously, the human rights organization 'Hengaw' reported on October 27 that the intensification of economic and security crimes related to mandatory hijab is part of the 'establishment of gender apartheid' in the Islamic Republic of Iran and called on the global human rights community to refer to the Islamic Republic by this name — namely, gender apartheid. The so-called 'Hijab and Chastity' bill has been approved by the Guardian Council of the Islamic Republic and sent to the Islamic Consultative Assembly. Hengaw reported that this bill emphasizes not only violent actions against women and the queer community regarding mandatory hijab but also broader implementation of 'gender segregation' in universities, administrative and educational centers, as well as parks and recreational areas, and even gender segregation in hospital treatment sections.