Iran International:

Local authorities are deploying advanced surveillance technologies in Isfahan to identify and threaten women who defy the country’s strict hijab regulations, according to research by internet watchdog Filterwatch.

The NGO, which specializes in internet freedoms in Iran and the Middle East, released a report last week detailing new technologies and tools allegedly used by authorities in Isfahan, Iran's third most populous city, for hijab enforcement.

These include International Mobile Subscriber Identity-Catchers (IMSI-Catchers), data from contactless card readers, and urban surveillance cameras.

IMSI-Catchers—also known as fake cell towers—can intercept and track mobile phone communications by impersonating legitimate towers. A portable fake cell tower carried by a hijab enforcer, for instance, can connect to the cell phone of a woman not wearing the hijab on the street and identify her number.

“The combined use of IMSI-Catchers, contactless card readers, and surveillance cameras—along with access to government databases and the cooperation of telecom operators—has created a powerful, multilayered tool to systematically violate women’s rights through identification, tracking, and intimidation,” Filterwatch said in its report.

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