The Iranian regime triggered an internet "kill switch" in an apparent effort to hide alleged abuses by security forces and as protests against it surged nationwide, a cybersecurity expert has claimed.

The blackout slashed internet access to a fraction of normal levels on the 13th day of the protests as rights groups, including Amensty International, accused the regime of using lethal force against protesters.

"This is Iran’s war against its own population using digital means," NetBlocks CEO Alp Toker told Fox News Digital.

"This was a piecemeal measure that eventually encompassed the entire country, with the government willing to use this kind of measure for an extended period of time," he said.

"There would be an attempt by the regime to cover up crimes that it may have committed, so this blackout could potentially last for days or weeks," Toker added.

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At least 65 people have been killed in the protests, according to Human Rights Activists in Iran, which said late Friday that the death toll had more than doubled since earlier in the week.

The group also reported that more than 2,300 people have been arrested and that demonstrations have spread to at least 180 cities nationwide. Most of those killed were protesters, the group said.

"People in Iran daring to express their anger at decades of repression and demand fundamental change are once again being met with a deadly pattern of security forces unlawfully firing at, chasing, arresting and beating protesters," Amnesty International also said in a statement Thursday.

"The single kill switch is the censorship mechanism that is centrally controlled by the regime, so there are no legal procedures or mechanisms for people to push back," Toker said.

"We know now that they’ve centralized all of this into a one-step operation," he explained, calling it "very much a top-down mechanism."

"It’s been in development since the Cold War, and it means they are able to triangulate the ground terminal in satellite transmissions. Some governments implement this kind of kill switch in their cyber operations rooms," he said.

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"We know that in 2019, for example, it used to be a painstaking measure when the government had to switch off businesses one by one, city by city."

NetBlocks said the current blackout is among the most severe it has ever recorded in Iran.

"We are tracking near-total disconnection of internet service across Iran right now, and connectivity is below 2% of ordinary levels," Toker said.

"This is a nationwide disruption that is impacting almost all services, all connectivity and all avenues of life, extending beyond just mobile phones and computers," he said.

"It’s impacting banks, essential services, and there’s very little communication within the country, so people are unable to reach the outside world and nobody has the ability to communicate."

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Despite the sweeping restrictions, some limited communication channels remain available, Toker revealed.

"There are a few gaps, so it's possible to communicate with those close to the borders through Wi-Fi or mobile service that crosses borders," he said.

"It’s also occasionally possible to find a part in the service, in a fixed-line service, where they can tunnel through all those, but that is increasingly rare and no longer an option. 

"Another mechanism we’ve seen is access via satellite internet, namely the Starlink network, but the equipment is banned by the Iranian regime."

"The technology that the Iranian regime uses to trace links is essentially anti-espionage technology," he said.

"These measures are typically imposed by the most authoritarian regimes, the most controlling governments that seek to silence and oppress their own populations," Toker said.

"NetBlocks tracked very similar multi-week disruption in 2019, during which thousands were killed, and this was also done in 2022 when people were protesting the killing of Mahsa Amini."

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"In past incidents, we did observe that the government attempted to keep a baseline of service available.

"In this recent case, they pulled the plug, so there’s a far more extreme measure in place here, which suggests that the regime is scared and isn’t taking risks when it comes to the possibility of information reaching the outside world."

President Donald Trump warned Iran’s leaders Friday against using force on protesters.

Speaking to reporters at the White House, he warned Iran was in "big trouble."

"I just hope the protesters in Iran are going to be safe, because that’s a very dangerous place right now," Trump said. "You’d better not start shooting, because we’ll start shooting, too."

"The U.S. has encouraged democracy in Iran, and that’s a positive thing at this point," Toker said.

"There’s very little that can be done from the outside, but it’s important to continue to support positive efforts.

"A free and open internet in Iran, and indeed in other countries, can encourage democracy and support basic liberties," he added.

Humans have been chewing gum for thousands of years — long after the flavor fades and without any clear nutritional benefit.

The habit dates back at least 8,000 years to Scandinavia, where people chewed birch bark pitch to soften it into a glue for tools. Other ancient cultures, including the Greeks, Native Americans and the Maya, also chewed tree resins for pleasure or soothing effects, National Geographic recently reported.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, William Wrigley Jr. transformed chewing gum from a novelty into a mass consumer habit through relentless and innovative marketing. His brands, including Juicy Fruit and Spearmint, promoted gum as a way to calm nerves, curb hunger and stay focused.

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"Are you worried? Chew gum," an article from 1916 said, according to Kerry Segrave's book "Chewing Gum in America, 1850-1920: The Rise of an Industry." "Do you lie awake at night? Chew gum," it continued. "Are you depressed? Is the world against you? Chew gum."

In the 1940s, a study found chewing resulted in lower tension, but couldn't say why. "The gum-chewer relaxes and gets more work done," the New York Times wrote at the time about the study's results.

Gum became an early form of wellness, and companies are trying to revive that idea today as gum sales decline, according to National Geographic.

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But only now are scientists finally beginning to understand the biology behind those long-standing beliefs.

A 2025 review by researchers at the University of Szczecin in Poland analyzed more than three decades of brain-imaging studies to examine what happens inside the brain when people chew gum. Using MRI, EEG and near-infrared spectroscopy research, the authors found that chewing alters brain activity in regions tied to movement, attention and stress regulation.

The findings help clarify why the seemingly pointless task can feel calming or focusing, even once the flavor has faded.

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Chewing gum activated not only the brain's motor and sensory networks involved in chewing, but also higher-order regions linked to attention, alertness and emotional control, the review found. EEG studies found brief shifts in brain-wave patterns linked to heightened alertness and what researchers call "relaxed concentration."

"If you're doing a fairly boring task for a long time, chewing seems to be able to help with concentration," Crystal Haskell-Ramsay, a professor of biological psychology at Northumbria University, told National Geographic.

The review also supports earlier findings that gum chewing can ease stress, but only in certain situations. In laboratory experiments, people who chewed gum during mildly stressful tasks such as public speaking or mental math often reported lower anxiety levels than those who didn't.

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Chewing gum did not, however, consistently reduce anxiety in high-stress medical situations, such as immediately before surgery, and it offered no clear benefit when participants faced unsolvable problems designed to induce frustration.

Across multiple studies, people who chewed gum did not remember lists of words or stories better than those who didn't, the researchers also found, and any boost in attention faded soon after chewing stopped.

Gum may simply feed the desire to fidget, experts suspect.

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"Although these effects are often short-lived, the range of outcomes … underscores chewing gum's capacity to modulate brain function beyond simple oral motor control," the researchers wrote.

"However, at this time, the neural changes associated with gum chewing cannot be directly linked to the positive behavioral and functional outcomes observed in studies," they added.

Future research should address longer-term impacts, isolate flavor or stress variables and explore potential therapeutic applications, the scientists said.

The findings also come with caveats beyond brain science. Although sugar-free gum may help reduce cavities, Fox News Digital has previously reported that dentists warn acids, sweeteners and excessive chewing may harm teeth or trigger other side effects.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the study's authors for comment.