Chairman Pakistan Ulema Council Hafiz Tahir Ashrafi, while addressing Ulema-e-Mashaikh Convention on November 13, said that “Firewall and blocking of VPNs are necessary steps to save the youth.”
“You have to take all these steps, including blocking apps, VPNs, or installing firewall if you want to save the younger generation,” said the state-affiliated religious scholar.
Authorities in Pakistan have taken dramatic steps to control social media, including thee blockage of X (formerly Twitter). Ironically, the Prime Minister of Pakistan also uses X regularly to share his views, which isn’t possible without the use of VPNs.
In September 2024, the Pakistan Telecom Authority (PTA) clarified that virtual private networks (VPNs) in the country would not be blocked.
As the government decided to ban the social media platform X in February, the use of VPNs by local internet users witnessed a significant increase in 2024.
A report by Top10VPN, an independent VPN review website, stated that the demand for proxy networks increased by 131 per cent on Feb 19, two days after X was blocked.
“Recent news circulating in media about PTA to block VPNs, it is clarified that VPNs are not being blocked in Pakistan,” PTA said in a statement.
“However, PTA is encouraging all IT companies, software houses, freelancers and banks, etc, to register their IPs for using VPNs so that in case of any disruption, the internet services to these entities are not affected.”
Users have also complained about the slowdown of the internet ever since the government undertook trial runs of firewall technology, while information technology minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja said during a press conference in August that the “use of VPNs was the reason for the slowdown of internet services across the country.”
However, contrary to the PTA’s earlier clarification, users have reported problems accessing VPNs since last week. ProPakistani reported that their sources confirmed, “unregistered VPNs are being blocked through a firewall and are temporarily blocked for whitelisting.”
After a controversy over blocking virtual private networks (VPNs) and growing public anger in Pakistan, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Wednesday rolled out a streamlined process for legitimate users to register their VPNs.
The PTA held a consultation session on the VPN registration framework yesterday. Representatives from the Ministry of IT & Telecommunication (MoIT&T), the Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB), and the Pakistan IT Association (P@SHA) attended the session.
According to a statement issued by the PTA, the session aimed to foster a secure environment for the IT and e-commerce sectors in Pakistan.
“The PTA introduced a streamlined VPN registration process, allowing legitimate users to register their VPNs through a new online platform at ipregistration.pta.gov.pk,” the statement further said.