Iran to Quit Internet, Take Ball, Go Home

[Habbaku]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/9453905/Iranian-state-goes-offline-to-dodge-cyber-attacks.html

Reza Taghipour, the country's telecommunications minister, said the step was being taken because sensitive intelligence was vulnerable on the worldwide web, which he said was untrustworthy because it was controlled by "one or two" countries hostile to Iran.

"The establishment of the national intelligence network will create a situation where the precious intelligence of the country won't be accessible to these powers," Mr Taghipour told a conference on Sunday at Tehran's Amir Kabir University.

He described the move as the first phase of a project to replace the global internet with a domestic intranet system scheduled to be completed within 18 months.

Opponents have previously denounced the plan as a means of stamping out western influence on the internet while further tightening already stringent online surveillance of political activists and regime critics.

While Iranian officials have repeatedly spoken about creating their own alternative to the internet, the latest announcement follows the upheaval wreaked by Stuxnet and Flame, both of which are believed to have been developed jointly by the US and Israel.

Stuxnet, discovered in 2010, caused extensive damage to Iran's uranium enrichment programme, which Iran insists is peaceful despite the west's suspicions that it is designed to produce an atomic bomb.

Flame, detected this year, was an even more sophisticated virus that is believed to have targeted Iran's oil ministry and main export terminal.

Nima Rashedan, an Iranian cyber-security specialist based in the Czech Republic, said the domestic network was unlikely to be effective. "In terms of cyber security, Iran is one of the most backward countries I know," he said. "Because of the dis-functionality of the government, I don't think they will be able to implement it properly.

[jimmy olsen]

In theory it shouldn't be that difficult to set up an independent Iran-net, but I'm skeptical they can pull it off well.

[DGuller]

They could buy France's Internet, so they wouldn't have to start from scratch.  I hear you can get a great deal on it now.

[Josquius]

this is just the iranian government right?
not too big a deal then. pretty sane move and not that dificult to do

[Razgovory]

Why is it a sane move, Tyr?  It's not like it will protect them from thumb drives.

[Josquius]

Why is it a sane move, Tyr?  It's not like it will protect them from thumb drives.

Because no security measures can ever make you 100% secure you shouldn't do anything?

[chipwich]

Because no security measures can ever make you 100% secure you shouldn't burn technological infrastructure bridges in the name of security.

[Razgovory]

Why is it a sane move, Tyr?  It's not like it will protect them from thumb drives.

Because no security measures can ever make you 100% secure you shouldn't do anything?

That doesn't answer my question.  Why is this a sane move?

[Razgovory]

Because no security measures can ever make you 100% secure you shouldn't burn technological infrastructure bridges in the name of security.

I imagine that important sites are already cut off from the internet and use an internal network.  The big reason to do this is to keep information away from the public. 

[Josquius]

Because no security measures can ever make you 100% secure you shouldn't burn technological infrastructure bridges in the name of security.

This won't make them totally secure but it will make them a lot more secure. And they're not burning any bridges. They can still use the internet again whenever they want. Just not on the computers where they're conducting ev0l.

That doesn't answer my question.  Why is this a sane move?

Yes it does. Its a sane move because it tightens security a lot.

I imagine that important sites are already cut off from the internet and use an internal network.  The big reason to do this is to keep information away from the public. 

I'm pretty sure this is just the Iranian government. The country would be up in arms were it the internet being cut off for the whole place. I've certainly heard nothing about it from my Iranian friends.

[CountDeMoney]

I've certainly heard nothing about it from my Iranian friends.

[Josquius]

I've certainly heard nothing about it from my Iranian friends.

I actually do know loads of Iranians.
They seem to work in the way where once you get to know one of them then you suddenly know everyone he has ever met.

[jimmy olsen]

I'm pretty sure this is just the Iranian government. The country would be up in arms were it the internet being cut off for the whole place. I've certainly heard nothing about it from my Iranian friends.

Because they've been cut off from the internet.

[Viking]

This is good. Now when Iranians want to download recipes and skype with relatives in Tehrangeles they have to go to the real internet rather than have to suffer the great firewall of persia. Dictatorships have realized that cutting off just means people will find ways to the real internet, but regulating the existing one like china does works much better. Iran can't even shut down satellite tv, what makes you think they can shut down the internet?