Pakistan government admits 'tinkering' with internet amid rising disruptions

Islamabad [Pakistan], August 16 (ANI): After months of speculation about a potential 'firewall' causing internet disruptions in the country, Pakistan's IT minister confirmed on Thursday that the government was indeed upgrading its 'web management system' to "address cybersecurity threats," Dawn reported.
Although Shaza Fatima Khawaja, the Minister of State for Information Technology and Telecommunication, used somewhat vague language, this was the first official admission of the government's actions. These actions had been blamed for various issues, including slow browsing speeds, arbitrary social media and WhatsApp connectivity disruptions.
Until now, official stakeholders had either pretended not to know about the problems in response to public and media concerns or attributed the issues to telecom and internet service providers or even Meta, as reported by Dawn.
On Thursday, users continued to face issues accessing social media platforms, including WhatsApp.
Downdetector, a site that tracks real-time internet outages, reported an unusually high volume of complaints about disruptions affecting WhatsApp, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram between noon and 1 p.m.
Additionally, internet service providers such as PTCL, Zong, and Nayatel experienced service interruptions throughout the day.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication, Fatima mentioned that the government had requested a report from the PTA and other institutions regarding the internet disruptions.
"The internet should never be slow. We have been talking about bringing 5G technology to Pakistan. There is no doubt about that, and conversations about higher internet speed are underway," she said.
When asked about the term 'firewall,' which the public has used to describe internet issues due to the lack of official information, the Pak minister said the situation had been "blown out of proportion."
"The government has been operating a web-management system. The system is now being upgraded," she added.
She further described this upgrade as "a routine exercise" globally to improve internet security but did not provide details on which other countries have implemented similar systems.
"It is the right of the government to take measures to protect its interests given the cyber security attacks that Pakistan is facing."
Earlier, during the Senate committee meeting, lawmakers pointed out that internet disruptions were significantly affecting online businesses.
Senator Afnanullah Khan of PML-N noted that the country was already grappling with a severe economic crisis, and unresolved internet issues could lead to a substantial decline in IT sector exports.
The Ministry of IT and Telecommunications secretary, Aisha Humera Chaudhry, informed the meeting that while broadband connections were functioning normally, users of mobile data were experiencing disruptions.
PTA officials told the committee that the telecom regulator was "assessing the issue" and that the ministry would have a clearer picture in two weeks once the assessment was complete. However, upon contact, a spokesperson from PTA claimed to be unaware of the connectivity problems users were facing on Thursday, Dawn reported. (ANI)