Iran Warns Activists, Online Businesses Against Posting Protest Content

IranWire has learned that in recent days, coinciding with the start of a new wave of protests across Iran, security and intelligence agencies have contacted civil society activists and social media users with threats and warnings.

According to information received by IranWire, the threatening calls and text messages have targeted women's rights activists, former political prisoners, and owners of online businesses who publicly declared strikes or expressed support for the protests.

Earlier, the "United Students" (Daneshjooyane Motahed) Telegram channel reported that security guards affiliated with the Ministry of Intelligence and other security bodies connected to universities had reached out to some students from Tehran, Beheshti, and Khajeh Nasir universities, as well as their families, warning them of arrest and expulsion.

The calls were made from anonymous (private) numbers and were reportedly placed primarily by university security offices and the Ministry of Intelligence. In several cases, students were threatened with being summoned to disciplinary committees, expelled from their universities, or detained.

These threats were issued before a post by Donald Trump, the President of the United States, in which he addressed officials of the Islamic Republic, urging them not to resort to repression and the killing of protesters, and warning that otherwise the United States would be prepared to support protesting citizens.

"Woman, Life, Freedom" Is Forbidden

At the same time, several users on X (formerly Twitter) reported being threatened by security agencies for posting content that included the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom," which has become closely associated with protest movements in Iran.

Motahare Goonei, a former political prisoner and a student barred from higher education, shared a screenshot of a threatening text message she received. In the message, she was warned against posting calls for gatherings or joining what were described as "hostile or counter-revolutionary groups."

Zeinab Zaman, a civil activist, also wrote on her X account that security bodies warned her not to post any content containing the "Woman, Life, Freedom" slogan.

Shirin Jahani, a participant in the 2022 protests, told IranWire, "On the third day of the protests, they called my father from a private number and threatened him: if I continued posting protest-related content or using the 'Woman, Life, Freedom' slogan on my account, not only I but also my younger brother would be arrested."

She said her father urged her to deactivate her Instagram and X accounts, but she nonetheless received two additional threatening messages afterward.

Threats to Social Media Influencers

Three Instagram users told IranWire that security agencies threatened them after they posted content inspired by lyrics from Iranian singer Mehdi Yarrahi that referenced protests and women's participation in demonstrations.

One influencer said that after resharing a post about women's presence in recent protests, she received a call from a private number and was summoned. She said she was ultimately released with a warning not to publish similar content again.

She, who also shared a screenshot of the call on her Instagram account, added, “I know that some other influencers were summoned, but I was only threatened and told that I must not post this kind of content again.”

Other users also reported receiving threatening messages aimed at shutting down or blocking accounts allegedly linked to the "Restart" group on social media.

Threats Against Online Businesses

As merchants in several Iranian cities launched widespread strikes beginning on January 7, 2026, several online businesses publicly announced their support for the strikes and the broader protest movement. Hundreds of online businesses, most of them operating on Instagram, posted stories or messages expressing solidarity with protesters. 

Some wrote, "While people are out in the streets, we are not standing at our registers." "The economic conditions imposed on the people are unjust."

According to business owners who spoke to IranWire, these posts were quickly followed by threats from security agencies. One Instagram shop owner said last week he received two threatening text messages on consecutive days, warning him not to participate in protest gatherings.

Another recipient of similar messages told IranWire, "They told me to immediately 'fix myself,' but what we see is that all officials say protesting economic hardship is a right of citizens. Yet they threaten us in text messages. Not even in the threats do they explain why it's not a right to protest economic conditions or how protesting a 150,000-toman dollar price is less peaceful than posting a story online."

Defiance and Public Exposure

Despite the threats, several Instagram users said they continued posting protest-related content and did not deactivate their accounts. Instead, many publicly shared screenshots of threatening calls and messages, in some cases mocking the security agencies.

The variation in message language and different sender identifiers suggests that multiple security bodies are involved in the intimidation campaign. According to information obtained by IranWire, these include provincial information departments, the IRGC Intelligence Organization, and prosecutors' offices.