Iran Arrests Dozens In Starlink Black Market Network
Bloomberg cites Iran's ISNA news agency, which says local authorities have arrested dozens of people for selling SpaceX Starlink terminals across 19 provinces.
These satellite internet terminals have become popular among opposition and activist networks operating in the country amid an ongoing nationwide internet blackout during the U.S.-Iran conflict.
Sardar Ahmad-Reza Radan, commander-in-chief of the Iranian police, was quoted by the outlet as saying, "From the beginning of the Ramadan War, 48 key members of networks, cells, anti-revolutionary groups, and espionage rings were arrested, and 139 Starlink devices were also discovered."
سردار رادان: از ابتدای جنگ رمضان ۴۸ نفر از عناصر اصلی شبکهها، هستهها، گروهکهای ضد انقلاب و جاسوسی بازداشت شدند و ۱۳۹ دستگاه استارلینک نیز کشف شده استhttps://t.co/aXibi8kDKA pic.twitter.com/IVHueV69xu
— خبرگزاری ایسنا (@isna_farsi) March 30, 2026
With the U.S.-Iran conflict entering its second month, the internet-tracking firm NetBlocks reported earlier that Iran has been under an internet blackout for over 720 hours.
⚠️ Update: It has now been over 720 hours since #Iran fell off the global internet with the digital blackout entering its 31st day.
— NetBlocks (@netblocks) March 30, 2026
As the shutdown continues into its second month, misinformation and propaganda increasingly fill the void both domestically and internationally. pic.twitter.com/pz5SNzFYiD
Before the conflict broke out, there were reports that U.S.-aligned activist NGOs had smuggled in thousands of these satellite terminals to evade a ground-based internet blackout designed to stop the flow of information and prevent widespread uprisings. A Starlink terminal connects to a satellite in low Earth orbit that beams internet hundreds, if not thousands, of miles away from ground-based repeaters in surrounding countries.
We also tracked the black-market prices of Starlink terminals in Iran shortly before the conflict erupted, citing a report that said these terminals, which normally cost several hundred dollars in the West, were going for as much as $4,000.
The internet blackout across Iran has created an information vacuum that is being filled by state-controlled narratives, while the US and Israel have hoped to run information operations on the ground through Starlinks.