Chairman of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) retired Major General Hafeezur Rehman has announced that the regulator will be blocking all illegal virtual private networks (VPNs) in Pakistan.
He shared this update during a briefing to the Senate Standing Committee on IT and Telecom in Islamabad today (Monday)
The Chairman explained that the PTA has already registered 20,500 VPNs and is working to increase this number.
Read more: Meta announces undersea cable to improve Pakistan’s internet speed
He also noted that the PTA receives about 150 complaints daily concerning social media platforms. Of these complaints, 98 per cent are about TikTok, while Meta (which includes Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) makes up 48 per cent, and YouTube accounts for 52 per cent.
It is important to mention that since the blocking of X (formerly known as Twitter), the use of VPNs in Pakistan has surged.