By Spy Uganda
In a dramatic escalation of rhetoric amid ongoing tensions with Israel, Iran’s state broadcaster on Tuesday urged citizens to delete WhatsApp from their phones, accusing the messaging service of spying on behalf of the “Zionist enemy.”
According to a televised statement aired by Iran’s state-run media, WhatsApp — along with Instagram, both owned by tech giant Meta — is allegedly “collecting information about individuals and providing the Zionist enemy with their last known location and communications, tagged with the names of individuals.” No evidence was presented to support the explosive claims.
The announcement comes at a time of heightened military tensions between Iran and Israel, with both nations reportedly engaging in cross-border strikes and cyber threats.
WhatsApp swiftly issued a statement dismissing the accusations as baseless and politically motivated.
“We’re concerned these false reports will be an excuse for our services to be blocked at a time when people need them the most,” the company said. “All of the messages you send to family and friends on WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted, meaning no one except the sender and recipient has access to those messages — not even WhatsApp.”
The company reiterated that it does not track users’ precise locations or share message content, and added that it does not provide bulk data to any government.
The accusations come amid worsening internet disruptions across Iran. Citizens and tech watchdogs have reported widespread throttling and outages, which many suspect are government-imposed restrictions intended to limit the spread of information, particularly regarding airstrikes and civil unrest.
Iranian authorities have neither confirmed nor denied the intentional throttling of internet services, but sources inside the country say the move is part of a broader strategy to reduce vulnerability to Israeli cyberattacks while tightening control over the domestic narrative.
This isn’t the first time Iranian authorities have targeted Meta-owned platforms. Instagram was one of the few global social media platforms not previously blocked in Iran, but recent crackdowns have intensified, especially after anti-government protests erupted in the country in 2022 and 2023.
Cybersecurity analysts warn that Tehran’s new accusations against WhatsApp may signal an imminent nationwide ban, potentially cutting off a major communication lifeline for millions of Iranians who rely on the encrypted platform for both personal and professional use.
“This is a classic move in the authoritarian playbook,” said one Middle East tech analyst based in Europe. “By framing global platforms as security threats, governments justify their censorship — while isolating their populations further from the world.”
As of Tuesday evening, WhatsApp remained accessible in many parts of Iran, though with intermittent outages reported in major cities, including Tehran, Shiraz, and Isfahan.
