Iran to block social apps Viber, WhatsApp

Tehran: The Iranian judiciary has ordered the ministry of communications to block social networking apps such as Viber, Tango and WhatsApp over dissemination of derogatory content, media reported Sunday.

Iran's Prosecutor General Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei demanded that the ministry, in line with an order issued by Iranian Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani, take immediate action to block the messaging services, Press TV reported.

The Iranian prosecutor general made the request in a letter sent to Minister of Communications and Information Technology Mahmoud Vaezi Saturday.

The letter cited the spread of obscene material and offensive content against the Islamic and moral values through the mentioned social networks.

Some of the contents are managed by foreign "governments hostile to the Islamic Republic of Iran establishment", the letter read.

The prosecutor general warned that if the Iranian ministry of communications fails to implement the order within one month, the judiciary itself will take necessary action.

Iran has also blocked video-sharing website, YouTube since Dec 3, 2006.

The YouTube ban came after a video was posted online that showed an Iranian soap opera star having sex.

The block was lifted and then reinstated after the 2009 Iranian presidential election.

In 2012, Iran reinstated the YouTube block, along with Google, after the trailer for the film "Innocence of Muslims" was released on the site.