Instagram Given Banhammer In Iran

Various social networking websites have been targeted by countries in recent times, each expressing some sort of concern over the population's ability to share an un-filtered opinion. Instagram is the latest among them, having drawn the negative attention of officials in Iran.

The information is coming from an Iranian news source said by AlJazeera to be "semi-official". According to that news agency's report, a court in the nation has passed an order that Instagram is to be blocked — adding it to the list of other websites that have already suffered the same fate.

The reason? Iran's Ministry of Telecommunications is said to have been hit with a private lawsuit wanting a ban of the website. A court order was reportedly passed following this requiring the service to be blocked, addressing privacy concerns. If true, this would follow bans on Twitter and Facebook.

What isn't confirmed at this point is whether the claim is true. As of the end of last week, at least, The Associated Press was reporting that those inside the nation could still access Instagram after the order was passed — whether it simply hadn't yet gone into effect or the report is wrong isn't entirely clear.

SOURCE: Al Jazeera