Iran Judge Pokes Facebook Founder Over Privacy Complaints

An Iranian judge wants to see Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg in court.

The judge ordered Zuckerberg to appear in court and answer complaints from Iranian citizens who say Facebook-owned apps Instagram and Whatsapp have invaded their privacy, the semi-official state news agency reported Tuesday. Zuckerberg is highly unlikely to show since Iran and the United States don’t have an extradition treaty.

Facebook and Twitter were officially banned from the country in 2009, following massive street protests over a widely disputed election. A court extended the social media ban to Instagram over privacy concerns, last week.

Tech savvy Iranians often circumvent the nation’s firewall using VPN servers. President Hassan Rouhani has come out in opposition to sweeping social media bans, the Associated Press reports, saying the country should at least develop viable alternatives before shutting the sites down.

[AP]