Government declares Wi-Fi devices unsafe

Government issues advisory, declaring Wi-Fi devices unsafe, urging enhanced cybersecurity measures.

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The government has declared Wi-Fi devices insecure, prompting the National Information Technology Board (NITB) to issue a security advisory for all organisations, Express News reported.

The advisory highlights the cybersecurity risks associated with the use of wireless networks and advises on measures to enhance security.

The government pointed out that due to default security configurations and a lack of user awareness, malicious actors can gain unauthorized access to networks and systems, potentially installing malware and stealing sensitive information.

To mitigate these risks, the advisory recommends several actions: changing default credentials, using strong and unique passwords for router access, ensuring password complexity, and implementing secure encryption protocols such as WPA3.

The advisory also suggests regularly updating the SSID (Wi-Fi name), hiding the SSID to avoid public broadcasting, and ensuring Wi-Fi security through proper encryption.

These measures aim to reduce vulnerability and safeguard networks from cyber threats.

On the other hand, a report by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) highlights that the surge in Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) usage during internet disruptions is a major cause of slow internet speeds in Pakistan.

VPNs bypass local content delivery networks (CDNs), which account for 70% of internet delivery, leading to inefficiencies and increased reliance on international servers.

This surge has also caused economic losses, with each megabyte of data via VPN costing around $1.

VPN bandwidth usage peaked at 634 Gbps in August and remained high through the following months, before stabilizing at 437 Gbps in December.

The PTA urges the development of a strategy to manage VPN usage and improve local internet infrastructure to minimize these impacts.

In addition, Pakistan's internet infrastructure issues have been linked to slow speeds, challenges in media downloading, and disruptions, partly due to government tests on a "firewall" to monitor and block specific content.

Pakistan's internet performance ranks poorly globally, with slow speeds affecting businesses, education, healthcare, and governance.

Last year, Pakistan faced a massive $1.62 billion financial loss due to internet outages and social media shutdowns.