A senior Iranian official has described Starlink satellite internet as a "tool of war" for Iran's enemies, Al Jazeera reported from Tehran on 14 October.
Mohammad Amin Aghamiri, secretary of the Supreme National Cyberspace Council, said the service was used by Iran's enemies for command and control, espionage and information gathering, according to the Al Jazeera report.
Mr Aghamiri also said: "We have several systems for cutting off Starlink satellite terminals." He did not say what those systems were.
Al Jazeera reported that one of the systems was used during the protests in January. It also reported that the authorities were prepared to share the technology with aligned countries.
Mr Aghamiri urged Iranians to use domestic platforms backed by the National Information Network. He also backed a tiered-access model, under which selected groups would have protected international access.
Al Jazeera said the authorities did not rule out new internet restrictions, and hinted at them. It did not report a firm plan, and no specific measures or dates were given.
Separately, Iranian officials have warned that further restrictions could follow if the conflict intensifies, according to RTVonline, which cited Al Jazeera.
Starlink is banned in Iran on national security grounds. Al Jazeera reported that using or possessing a terminal carries a prison term of six months to two years, while importing or distributing terminals carries up to five years.
Al Jazeera also reported that the death penalty is possible if such offences are linked to espionage or national security. The report did not cite a specific legal provision, as far as the Tehran Telegraph could establish.
An anonymous telecoms expert based in Tehran told Al Jazeera that the authorities use several methods. These were jammers in different configurations, spoofed GPS coordinates to hinder the activation of new devices, and detection of Starlink-linked protocols.
The Tehran Telegraph has not been able to confirm these details independently. No response from SpaceX or its owner, Elon Musk, to Mr Aghamiri's remarks had been reported. In January, SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
Starlink is a satellite internet service run by SpaceX. It works without the heavy filtering applied to Iran's domestic network, which is why Iran bans it.
The Supreme National Cyberspace Council sets Iran's internet policy, and Mr Aghamiri heads its secretariat. He promotes the National Information Network, Iran's domestic internet.
Nationwide protests in January led to a three-week, state-imposed internet shutdown. Reuters reported on 17 January, in a report carried by Malay Mail, that Iran used jammers and spoofed GPS signals against Starlink.
Reuters also reported that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking to Al Jazeera TV, said the internet was cut after Iran confronted what he called terrorist operations and realised orders were coming from outside the country.
On 28 February, the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran. A war followed, along with a second nationwide internet shutdown that lasted 88 days.
Al Jazeera reported that reliance on satellite internet has grown as a way to bypass censorship in a country of 90 million people. Iran is one of several countries that have banned or restricted Starlink on national security grounds.
Officials have not said when, or whether, new restrictions will be introduced. Al Jazeera reported that any further steps could depend on how the conflict develops.
