Tensions over the Strait of Hormuz
Iran's sanctioned Persian Gulf Straits Authority (PGSA) briefly regained secure web access for four days in August after a Shanghai-based internet security firm, TrustAsia Technologies, issued it new digital security credentials despite US sanctions - restoring its ability to vet vessels and collect Strait of Hormuz tolls online, according to global internet monitors. The PGSA had lost its standard web security certificates after being added to the US Office of Foreign Assets Control's sanctions list in late May, forcing shipping firms dealing with it onto unencrypted connections that internet-monitoring group NetBlocks said could have exposed their data to interception. TrustAsia's issuance was a routine, automated domain-validation certificate rather than a manually vetted one, but US sanctions lawyers still urged the firm to review its compliance practices before offering further services to the IRGC-linked authority, warning it to act 'before it is too late'; the access was cut again days later.
As it ran
19 September 2026
18 September 2026
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