Media: Companies of 3 countries helped Iran in tracking phones of protesters

Canadian Portavan, British Telecell, and Russian Proti companies are alleged to have cooperated with the Iranian authorities in spying on mobile phones and the Internet, as well as tracking the phones of protestors via the SIAM system, Iran International said, Report informs.

As reported, despite the role of the two mobile operators in suppressing the nationwide actions of First Mobile and Irancell, a group of managers of the two companies will attend the global conference on information technologies to be held in Barcelona.

Hamarul Aul and Irancell serve the Iranian Radio Communications Regulatory Authority. This organization was subjected to European Union sanctions some time ago because it extensively assisted the Iranian authorities in spying and tracking users.

According to the information, two months ago, the Intercept news site reported that this organization uses SIAM to track and control the mobile phones of protesters and opponents. SIAM is a system with 40 special espionage capabilities operating at the level of Iran's mobile networks. With this tool, the government can slow down or block mobile Internet speed, break the encryption of phone calls, and track the movements of individuals or groups.

The Iranian government was not alone in the application of SIAM. A report by Canadian company Citizenlab includes documents that show three companies - Canada's Portavan, UK's Telecell, and Russia's Protin - are helping the Tehran regime in this area.

The British, Canadian, and Russian companies were contacted to explain this cooperation, but they did not make any comment.