PTA prepares draft rules for WiFi hotspots

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) had prepared a draft of ‘Data Retention of Internet Extended to WiFi-Hotspots’ regulations to facilitate service providers and its users through proper check and balances.

This draft intended to seek comments of all those interested  on the subject so as to introduce a mechanism for registration, maintenance and retention of information of persons using data services through Wi-Fi hotspots in public places. As the number of Wi-Fi hotspots at public places keeps increasing, the authority has come up with regulations.

The draft has now been finalised and notified to appropriate stakeholders. As per the rules, the owner of a public Wi-Fi hotspot will be required to maintain a log of the user information. As per Telecommunications Policy 2015, provision of public Wi-Fi hotspots, based on international standards, will be allowed for commercial use.

PTA has put the necessary regulations encompassing appropriate adjustments in transmit power and hop length to ensure that the benefit from Wi-Fi is maximised within constraints of the ITU-R Radio Regulations and possible interference effects.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 8^th, 2019.

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