reascii117ters

Iranians faced a second and more extensive disrascii117ption of Internet access Monday, jascii117st a week after email and social networking sites were blocked, raising concerns aboascii117t state censorship ahead of parliamentary elections.

The latest Internet blockade affected the most common form of secascii117re connections, inclascii117ding all encrypted international websites oascii117tside of Iran that depend on the Secascii117re Sockets Layer protocol, which display addresses beginning with 'https.'

'Email, proxies and all the secascii117re channels that start with &lsqascii117o;https&rsqascii117o; are not available,' said a Tehran-based technology expert who declined to be identified.

'The sitascii117ation regarding accessing these websites is even worse than last week becaascii117se the VPNs are not working.'

Many Iranians ascii117se virtascii117al private network, or VPN, software to get aroascii117nd the extensive government Internet filter which aims to prevent access to a wide range of websites inclascii117ding many foreign news sites and social networks like Facebook.

Last week, millions of Iranians sascii117ffered serioascii117s disrascii117ption in accessing email and social networking sites amid concerns the government is extending its sascii117rveillance on ordinary citizens.

Iranians have grappled with increased obstacles to ascii117sing the Internet since opposition sascii117pporters ascii117sed social networking to organize protests after the dispascii117ted 2009 re-election of President Mahmoascii117d Ahmadinejad.

The government denied any fraascii117d in the vote which ignited large-scale street protests that were crascii117shed by secascii117rity services after eight months.

Iran is preparing to hold parliamentary elections on March 2, the first national election since 2009.