According to a United Nations report released on Friday, March 14, Iran is implementing a range of technological measures—including aerial drones, facial recognition systems, and a citizen-reporting app—to enforce its mandatory hijab laws for women.
The report emphasizes Iran’s increasing reliance on technology to monitor and penalize those who defy the obligatory Islamic dress code.
A key component of this enforcement effort is the “Nazer” mobile application, which is backed by the government and empowers both citizens and law enforcement to report women accused of violating hijab regulations.
Investigators conducting a two-year fact-finding mission have accused Iran of systematic human rights abuses and crimes against humanity in its suppression of dissent, with particular focus on women and girls.
The “Nazer” app allows users to submit details such as the license plate, location, and time of vehicles where women are observed without hijabs. According to the report, the app subsequently “flags” these vehicles online to alert police.
In addition, the app sends real-time text messages to the registered owners of the vehicles, notifying them that they have been found in violation of hijab laws, and warns that their vehicles may be impounded for noncompliance.
Accessible through Iran’s police website (FARAJA), the app was expanded in September 2024 to include monitoring of women in ambulances, taxis, and public transport.
Authorities have also deployed aerial drones in Tehran and southern regions of Iran to surveil public areas and ensure compliance with hijab regulations. Furthermore, researchers found that new facial recognition software was reportedly installed in early 2024 at the entrance to Amirkabir University in Tehran to monitor compliance among female students.
Although a draft law titled “Hijab and Chastity” was suspended in December 2024 after internal discussions, it is perceived in the West as a significant threat to women and girls in Iran. If enacted, the law could impose penalties of up to 10 years in prison and fines as high as $12,000 for noncompliance. Under Article 286 of Iran’s Islamic Penal Code, women accused of “corruption on earth” could even face the death penalty.
The proposed legislation would further enhance the enforcement capabilities of Iran’s security forces and increase the use of technological surveillance, the report indicates.
In 2022, the UN reported that hundreds of individuals were killed during protests against Iran’s mandatory hijab law and broader political and social grievances following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in custody of the morality police in September 2022.
