Iran’s internet goes dark as US agencies spar on VPN funding

WASHINGTON – US agencies are struggling to find the best method to fund additional software for millions of Iranian civilians to get around their government’s strict internet censors, amid a surge in demand over weeks of domestic unrest.

The State Department, US senators from both parties, and other US agencies have advocated for funding virtual private networks and anti-censorship technology programs that would allow about a quarter of the people in Iran to access the internet without the Islamic Regime’s restrictions. 

But the offices involved can’t seem to agree on the best way to get US$10 million (S$12.6 million) to the Open Technology Fund, which finances programs to circumvent online censorship worldwide and has seen demand for VPNs in Iran rise to US25 million from the US7.5 million that it’s resourced to support. 

Without a resolution, some Iranians may not be able to safely get online in the coming weeks. 

“We need these funds yesterday,” said Ms Laura Cunningham, president of the Open Technology Fund (OTF). “If we don’t have these resources immediately, we will be forced to make difficult decisions about cutting off millions of VPN users in Iran as soon as next week.”

Since 2022, OTF has been receiving State Department funds consistently through the same mechanism, with State providing money to the US Agency for Global Media, which in turn gives it to OTF, Ms Cunningham said.

The process typically takes one or two weeks.

Deputy CEO of USAGM and an ally of Mr Trump, Ms Kari Lake, suggests that the traditional method “would take months,” and proposes that OTF use funds from its own budget to support the additional VPNs, according to a Feb 5 letter to Republican Senator Lindsey Graham seen by Bloomberg. 

This solution, however, is “not viable”, according to a Feb 10 reply from Mr Graham and fellow Republican Senator James Lankford also seen by Bloomberg.

The letter explains that advancing US$10 million to the organization’s yearly appropriation is “not surge funding” and would take away from other VPN support that OTF provides in China, Cuba and Russia.

“We are working hand-in-glove with the State Department to deliver on President Trump’s priorities,” USAGM’s Ms Lake said in a statement. 

“Support is on the way to ensure a steady flow of information – as fast as possible – through VPNs and a variety of other mechanisms,” Ms Lake added. “We will continue working tirelessly to deliver in this historic moment despite the Iranian regime’s suppression.”

The State Department echoed the need to help Iranians access information and to “have a voice despite the regime’s attempts to silence them,” according to a statement. “We are expanding these capabilities and working with international partners to share the costs of that expansion.”

Mr Zack Cooper, OTF’s board chair, rejected Ms Lake’s explanation. “The State Department immediately found $10 million for OTF to support VPN users in Iran,” he said in a statement. “If USAGM wanted OTF to have these additional resources to support VPN users in Iran, we would.”

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly cheered on protesters who began challenging Tehran’s clerical leadership since late 2025, said on Feb 13 that regime change would be “the best thing that could happen” to Iran.

Democratic Senators Jacky Rosen and Cory Booker joined forces with Mr Graham and Mr Lankford in late January, penning a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio that emphasised the importance of funding the software.

“Without the continuous operation of internet freedom programming carried out by the State Department and Open Technology Fund, millions of Iranians will lose their last secure window and voice to the outside world,” according to the Jan 28 letter seen by Bloomberg.

Because of US sanctions on Iran, civilians can’t pay for these services themselves so nonprofits like the OTF fund the technology that they can use for free.

Without VPNs to enable secure, uncensored internet usage, Ms Cunningham argues that Iranians risk being persecuted by the government, which has imposed an extremely aggressive censorship apparatus around the country. 

The VPNs also help hide people’s IP addresses, making it safer to use Starlink terminals that Mr Elon Musk has set up to help Iranians access the internet when the regime has turned it off. BLOOMBERG