Major General (R) Hafeezur Rehman, Chairman of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), announced on Monday that the regulator is going to block all illegal virtual private networks (VPNs) in Pakistan.
He stated this while briefing the Senate Standing Committee on IT and Telecom in Islamabad today. The chairman informed the committee that the authority has already registered 20,500 VPNs and is actively seeking to raise this figure.
Despite mounting worries about unauthorized VPN use, particularly for accessing prohibited platforms such as X (previously Twitter), the PTA chairman stated that the organization will not take immediate action against illegal VPNs, but will be more active once registration is more extensive.
The chairman stated that the PTA receives approximately 150 complaints each day concerning social media platforms. He stated that TikTok is responsible for 98% of these complaints, while Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp) accounts for 48% and YouTube for 52%.
Related: Firewall Trial Completed By PTA to Control Social Media
Regarding the future of X in Pakistan, Interior Ministry officials stated that its case is being heard in Islamabad, Sindh, and Lahore High Courts. During the Senate meeting, there were also questions about the legality of connecting to X via VPN. Interior Ministry authorities verified that using VPNs to access X is banned. A senator questioned why the Prime Minister was utilising VPN to post his comments.
Another Senator questioned why Pakistan cannot completely stop X because it is already restricted in the nation. PTA executives and federal government representatives were unable to offer a credible answer in this regard.
