PTCL internet services disrupted across country

PTA sources say outage occurred due to a technical fault

ISLAMABAD:

Internet users of PTCL and Ufone data consumers experienced service disruptions across the country on Wednesday, reporting outages and erratic service speed.

Incidentally, this disruption differed from the earlier reported internet outage, as there was no reported physical damage to either the PTCL optic fibre network or the international undersea internet cable systems.

Sources in the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) disclosed that the disruption occurred due to a technical fault, and a suspected cyberattack on the PTCL fibre optic system could have been a contributing factor.

Meanwhile, at around 10pm the PTA claimed that the matter had largely been brought under control.

"Exact issue is being investigated by PTA to avoid such instances in future," a statement by the regulator added. Earlier, a PTCL spokesperson issued a statement, maintaining that the company's network was experiencing data outages in various cities, which had affected connectivity.

"Our teams are actively working to resolve and rectify the issue as quickly as possible," the statement added.

At the same time, the telecom regulator issued a general alert on Instagram, stating that the internet services were disrupted in some parts of the country due to a fault in the PTCL system.

The PTA noted that the internet and broadband services might be affected during peak hours.

It further stated that the related teams were working to fix the fault, and the PTA would continue to monitor the situation until internet and broadband services were restored for all users.

While services began to return to normal by Wednesday evening, neither the PTA nor PTCL responded to queries regarding the reasons for the technical problems.