Iran is employing aerial drones, facial recognition technology, and a citizen-reporting application to uphold compulsory hijab regulations for women, as detailed in a United Nations report published on Friday, March 14.
The report underscores Iran’s use of advanced technology to oversee and penalize women who resist the mandatory Islamic dress requirements.
At the heart of this enforcement effort is the “Nazer” mobile application, a government-supported tool that permits both citizens and law enforcement to report women for supposed breaches of the dress code.
Investigators from a two-year fact-finding mission assert that Iran is committing widespread human rights abuses and crimes against humanity in its suppression of dissent, with a particular focus on women and girls.
According to the report, the “Nazer” mobile application allows users to submit the license plate, location, and time of a vehicle where a woman is observed without a hijab. The app then “flags” the vehicle online, alerting the police,” the report explains.
The app also “triggers a text message (in real-time) to the registered owner of the vehicle, warning them that they had been found in violation of the mandatory hijab laws, and that their vehicles would be impounded for ignoring these warnings,” according to the report.
Accessible through Iran’s police website, abbreviated as (FARAJA), the app’s reach was broadened in September 2024 to include women in ambulances, taxis, and public transportation.
Authorities have additionally utilized “aerial drones” in Tehran, the capital, and southern Iran to monitor public areas and “to monitor hijab compliance in public spaces,”
researchers discovered, alongside new facial recognition software reportedly introduced in early 2024 “at the entrance gate of the Amirkabir University in Tehran, to monitor such compliance by women students.”
Although paused in December 2024 following internal discussions, Iran’s proposed “Hijab and Chastity” law is viewed in Western nations as a grave danger to women and girls in the country.
If implemented, the law would enforce punishments of up to 10 years imprisonment and fines amounting to $12,000 for non-compliance, the report indicates. Under Article 286 of Iran’s Islamic Penal Code, women could face the “death penalty” if charged with “corruption on earth.”
The legislation would also grant expanded enforcement authority to Iran’s security forces while further amplifying the use of technology and surveillance, according to the report.
The UN reported in 2022 that hundreds of individuals lost their lives in protests against Iran’s mandatory hijab law and broader political and social concerns, sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in morality police custody in September 2022.
A Gentle Reminder: Every obstacle is a stepping stone, every morning; a chance to go again, and those little steps take you closer to your dream.
Nnamdi Okoli