Ban illegal VPNs: interior ministry writes to PTA

The ministry noted VPN misuse by terrorist groups to hide identities and enable secure communication.

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Ministry of Interior has directed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to block unauthorised Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), citing national security concerns and alleged misuse by terrorist groups.

In an official statement, the ministry highlighted that VPNs are being exploited by terrorist organisations to conceal identities and facilitate secure communication, Express News reported.

According to the ministry, unauthorised VPNs are reportedly being used for illicit financial transactions and aiding in terror-related activities.

The interior ministry further claimed that VPNs also enable access to content deemed inappropriate or blasphemous within Pakistan, presenting additional challenges to law enforcement.

To address these issues, the ministry requested PTA to take stringent measures against illegal VPN services, aiming to curtail their use for activities that threaten national security and public morality.

Earlier this week, PTA blocked more than 900,000 links to sites with offensive and pornographic content, marking a significant step in its ongoing crackdown on illicit online material.

PTA is intensifying its oversight on platforms disseminating offensive content and implementing measures to restrict access to these sites. This effort includes blocking websites flagged by citizens and governmental bodies.

PTA spokesperson revealed that Pakistan remains one of the top countries for online access attempts to pornographic content.

“Nearly 20 million attempts are blocked daily at the international gateway,” said the spokesperson, adding that VPNs are often used to circumvent these restrictions.

PTA confirmed that it had blocked 100,183 “blasphemous” URLs and 844,008 pornographic websites, based on data from ongoing monitoring efforts, Express News reported.

Despite these efforts, daily access attempts remain high, with around 20 million Pakistani users attempting to access pornographic content, according to PTA figures.

Although many websites are blocked through international gateways, some users bypass these restrictions using virtual private networks (VPNs).