Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Division, Sajid Mehdi, disclosed to the National Assembly on Wednesday that around 80,000 SIM cards have been blocked due to their use in spreading fake news, addressing concerns about misinformation on social media.
During a session focused on spreading false news on digital platforms, Mehdi revealed that the government has initiated several actions to combat this issue. Mehdi emphasized the need to amend the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), 2016, to enhance the handling of fake news cases. He noted that these amendments would speed up the legal proceedings for such cases.
Additionally, the government has started registering virtual private networks (VPNs) to monitor better and control online activities. An awareness campaign has also been launched to educate the public about the dangers and consequences of spreading fake news.
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) initiated the second phase of blocking mobile SIM cards to curb their illegal use. This phase targets SIM cards registered with expired Computerised National Identity Cards (CNICs) from before 2017 that have not been renewed.
“In the first phase, we focused on fake SIM cards and those linked to cancelled CNICs. Since August 16, we’ve blocked over 69,000 illegal SIMs,” PTA officials explained. The next phase will block SIMs registered under deceased individuals’ names.
Officials highlighted that fake SIM cards are implicated in various crimes, including terrorism, financial fraud, and other illegal activities. PTA uses data from the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) to identify and block these illegal SIMs.
