"Planet Labs told customers it has expanded what it calls its "area of interest," establishing restrictions on satellite images from "all of Iran and nearby allied bases, in addition to the Gulf States and existing conflict zones." It said it was placing a two-week hold on access to new imagery from that area in the company's commercial archive."
"The company said it made the decision "after consulting with experts inside and outside of government." But the spokesperson emphasized that "the change is not the result of a directive or requirement from any government. It is Planet's decision.""
"Planet Labs confirmed that the company had decided to take additional measures to ensure its imagery "is not tactically leveraged by adversarial actors to target allied and NATO-partner personnel and civilians.""
Planet Labs and Vantor, U.S.-based satellite imagery companies with federal contracts, implemented voluntary restrictions on satellite image access across the Middle East amid escalating U.S.-Israeli tensions with Iran. Planet Labs expanded its restricted area to include all of Iran, nearby allied bases, Gulf States, and existing conflict zones, implementing a two-week hold on new imagery access. The company previously imposed four-day delays on Gulf States imagery. Both companies emphasized these restrictions were not government-mandated but voluntary decisions made after consulting with government and non-government experts to prevent adversarial actors from using imagery to target allied and NATO-partner personnel and civilians.
#satellite-imagery-restrictions #middle-east-geopolitics #us-iran-tensions #commercial-space-intelligence #national-security
Read at The Washington Post
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]