Hafiz Rahman, Chairman of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), recently addressed misconceptions regarding the function of the newly installed firewall, clarifying that its primary purpose is to control grey traffic and not to curb social media propaganda.
During a briefing, Chairman Rahman, a retired Major General, explained that authorities established the firewall in 1999 and upgraded it in 2019 to function as a management system regulating gray traffic, which involves the unauthorized use of communication channels. He emphasized that this system does not cover social media platforms and cannot prevent the spread of propaganda, as the ongoing circulation of numerous memes demonstrates.
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The federal government directed the installation of the firewall, which the PTA has been tasked with implementing. The focus remains strictly on managing grey traffic without extending to social media content management.
Additionally, in a recent Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology session chaired by Senator Palwasha Muhammad Zai Khan, PTA officials addressed concerns regarding the accessibility of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). They apologized for any disruptions caused by the closure of VPN services and asserted that the PTA does not have the authority to control VPN usage directly.
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Officials also discussed Twitter’s temporary blockage in Pakistan, a measure taken due to the platform’s non-compliance with local laws concerning prohibited content. They noted that currently, the platform “X” is only accessible via VPNs and emphasized that blocking VPNs would negatively affect business operations, underscoring the complex balance the PTA must maintain in its regulatory role.
