PTA | Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF)

Pakistan Press Foundation

PTA blocks TikTok again due to ‘continuous presence of inappropriate content’

Pakistan Press Foundation

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority on Wednesday announced it had blocked ByteDance’s video-sharing platform TikTok in the country over “inappropriate content”. “In the light of relevant provisions of Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016, PTA has blocked access to TikTok App and website in the country,” the telecom regulator said. “The action has been taken due […]


TikTok says committed to complying with local laws

Pakistan Press Foundation

ISLAMABAD: In respectful compliance to the orders of the Peshawar High Court, the Pakistan Telecom Authority (PTA) has issued directions to service providers to immediately block access to the TikTok App. During the hearing of a case on Thursday, the PHC had ordered for the blocking of App. The official statement from TikTok regarding the […]


High Court orders immediate shutdown of TikTok

Pakistan Press Foundation

PESHAWAR – The Peshawar High Court on Thursday ordered the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to ban ‘TikTok until the ‘App’s officials comply with PTA’s request regarding stopping of immoral and obscene content. Peshawar High Court (PHC) Chief Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan ordered PTA to immediately ban TikTok’s app over proliferation of immoral videos, which were […]


Govt asked to extend deadline for blocking imported mobile phones

Pakistan Press Foundation

ISLAMABAD: The Mobile Phone Traders’ Association on Wednesday demanded that the deadline for blocking imported phones be extended by another month or two as a large number of dealers have placed orders for imported mobile phones. Speaking at a press conference at the National Press Club, the association’s Central President Munir Baig Mirza said dealers […]


Oct 20 deadline for mobile phone registration extended indefinitely

Pakistan Press Foundation

ISLAMABAD: Succumbing to pressure from some lawmakers, the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA) has extended indefinitely the Oct 20 deadline for registration of mobile phones. After the Senate Standing Committee on information technology directed the PTA not to block mobile phones until the committee approved its Device Identification, Registration and Blocking System (DIRBS) mechanism, the authority […]


PTA to block smuggled mobile phones after Oct 20

Pakistan Press Foundation

ISLAMABAD: In an attempt to curb illegal import of mobile devices, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has started to send messages through Short Messaging Service (SMS) to all mobile subscribers to create public awareness about Device Identification, Registration and Blocking System (DIRBS). Any mobile device that reflects non-compliant status after October 20 would be blocked in accordance […]


UN Human Rights Committee asks Pakistan about crimes against journalists

Pakistan Press Foundation

There has been a clear deterioration in the safety of journalists, the problem of impunity and of freedom of expression online. These were the main findings of the report submitted to the 120th session of UN Human Rights Committee in Geneva by Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF), in collaboration with IFEX, the global network defending and […]


Mobile broadband demand growing at rapid pace

Pakistan Press Foundation

KARACHI: In a sign that Pakistan is fast catching up with the global trend, the explosive growth of mobile broadband, such as third-generation (3G) and 4G or long-term evolution (LTE) technologies, has changed dynamics of the country’s broadband market. Almost non-existent two years ago, the high-speed mobile internet now accounts for 88% of the broadband […]


Desperate steps

Pakistan Press Foundation

ACCORDING to the visionaries at the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecom (MOITT), an ideal telecom and IT policy space in Pakistan would have Section 34 from the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Bill (PECB) in existence as law, with all other laws and policies in the IT and telecom space reflecting it. This is exactly […]


Several porn-free sites show up on restricted list

Pakistan Press Foundation

KARACHI: In a move that is likely to reignite the debate over internet censorship in the country, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PAT) has included many conventional and porn-free websites in a list of domains to be blocked as part of its drive against pornography. In January, the telecom sector’s regulatory body directed internet service providers (ISPs) […]


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Blocking all offensive websites is impossible, says PTA

Pakistan Press Foundation

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has finally admitted that it is virtually impossible to block all offensive websites as hundreds of sites emerge every day and even if blocked these may be accessed through proxy sites. In its reply submitted to the top court, the PTA has expressed reservations over the continuous blockade of […]


Internet challenge

Pakistan Press Foundation

ON Jan 12, 2016, Google launched localised versions of YouTube in three countries. Pakistan was one of them. On Jan 18, PTA issued a directive to internet service providers to lift the ban on YouTube. This brought the over three-year ban to an end. On the subject of localisation, when in 2013 the Lahore High […]


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YouTube back with vague transparency

Pakistan Press Foundation

ISLAMABAD: It has been 10 days since access to YouTube in Pakistan was reopened, but local producers of the content for the popular video-sharing website continue to worry when the axe will fall next and how. They say they are confused because the agreement between Google and the government of Pakistan, that unblocked YouTube after […]


Objectionable content: ISPs ordered to block 400,000 pornographic websites

Pakistan Press Foundation

KARACHI: Pakistan is preparing to launch a major crackdown on internet pornography after its telecom regulator ordered internet service providers on Monday to block access to more than 400,000 adult websites. Acess to sites featuring smut and pornographic material will be restricted at the domain level, sources familiar with the development confirmed this to The […]