Satellite companies restrict access to Middle East imagery amid Iran war

Two leading spatial intelligence companies say they are restricting access to satellite images of the Middle East in response to the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.

Planet Labs and Vantor, which are based in the United States and have federal contracts, say they were not ordered by any government to restrict image access. The Pentagon declined to comment Wednesday.

A spokesperson for California-based Planet Labs, which operates more than 200 satellites in orbit, shared a message sent to affected customers this week. The message 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 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. That is an expansion of restrictions the company implemented last week, when Planet Labs said it would delay access “for all new imagery collected over the Gulf States, Iraq, Kuwait, and adjacent conflict zones” for four days.

In the message sent to customers this week, 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.”

Spatial intelligence company Vantor also confirmed that it has instituted controls over access to satellite images of “parts of the Middle East” consistent with its existing policies.

“During times of geopolitical conflict, Vantor may implement enhanced access controls to prevent the misuse of sensitive geospatial intelligence and to help protect allied forces and civilians. These controls can include limiting who is able to task new imagery or purchase historical imagery over areas where U.S., NATO, and other allied and partner forces are actively operating, as well as over areas that are being actively targeted by adversaries,” Tomi Maxted, a spokesperson for Vantor, said in an email.

Maxted added that “Vantor independently determines when and how these controls are implemented as part of our responsible business practices. These decisions are not mandated by any government, military organization, or third party.”

In the ongoing and protracted Israel-Gaza conflict, Planet Labs said in 2023 that it had delayed sharing high-resolution imagery from Gaza.

Since the start of the Iran conflict, The Washington Post and other news outlets have cited Vantor and Planet Labs’ satellite imagery in their reporting, including using images showing damage from strikes at and around a school for girls in the southern Iranian city of Minab, at a U.S. naval base in Bahrain, and at Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait.

Vantor said it will not impose delays on imagery of Iran and other parts of the Middle East distributed to journalists as part of its News Bureau program but noted that it has never shared imagery of U.S., NATO and allied or partner forces or deployments with news outlets.