Amid the worst-ever economic crisis in Pakistan, the country is now facing internet outages in multiple cities including the national capital and economic hub, Karachi. As per a report by a report by Dawn, internet slowdown was experienced by users in various parts of Pakistan on Saturday, primarily due to "overloading".
Pakistan has 110 million internet users, nearly half the country’s population.
Notably, Pakistan has already been facing low bandwidth (a measurement of the amount of information that a particular computer network or Internet connection can send in a particular time. It is often measured in bits per second) due to the upgradation of the Web Management System, commonly referred to as an 'internet firewall'.
WhatsApp not working in Pakistan
Quoting a senior executive of one of the cellular mobile operators, the local media said the system is being upgraded to cater to up to 9 terabytes of internet traffic. Besides slow internet speed, users from Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore also reported difficulty in using social media sites such as WhatsApp in the past 24 hours.
The suspension of cellular and mobile data services in the twin cities since Friday morning affected basic services like online banking, ride-hailing and food delivery services, reported Dawn. Shahzad Arshad, an internet service provider in the eastern city of Lahore, said that businesses are suffering because they can’t contact international clients or are having trouble sending and receiving files.
40% to 80% slower internet speed in Pakistan
Chaudhry Arif, who runs a software company in the capital, Islamabad, said the internet speed was from 40% to 80% slower than the previous week, with no signs of improvement.
Earlier last month, when the same issues were reported across the country, Pakistan's IT minister said the slow internet service was due to the excessive use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), ARY News reported.
Shaza Fatima Khawaja, Pakistan's IT minister, while addressing a press conference, faced serious questions on the internet as the country has been experiencing slow speed for the past 1-2 months. During the presser, she asserted the internet was neither "blocked" nor intentionally slowed down, but the increased usage of VPNs has affected the internet speed.
Notably, virtual private networks (VPNs) that encrypt data and provide users with anonymity online have seen a surge in use in Pakistan in recent years as the government tightened its grip on the internet to curb dissent. It is a way to evade the country's server. Besides, the country is yet to launch the fifth generation 5G services in the country. Earlier in January, the then government had promised to launch it by August this year, however, there is no update about the same.
VPN causing slow internet speed: IT Minister
"When certain apps’ services were blocked, people started using VPNs, which bypassed local internet services and slowed down the internet," ARY News quoted her as saying. She added that using VPNs also slows down mobile internet speeds. Further, the IT minister also underscored the country has witnessed a sudden spike in internet users, which led to congestion in internet speed.
Earlier on Thursday, she mentioned that the government was indeed upgrading its 'web management system' to cope with cyber security threats. On August 16, multiple Pakistani media reported that the government is implementing an internet firewall to monitor and regulate content and social media platforms. However, the government denies the use of the firewall for censorship.
Internet censorship in Pakistan
Earlier this month, the IT minister categorically said that the government did not plan to use firewalls as a form of "censorship", Reuters reported. However, the government has already blocked access to social media platform X since the February elections in which the PTI won the most seats despite a crackdown and ban on it. The government has said the blocking was to stop anti-state activities and a failure by X to adhere to local Pakistani laws. Rights activists say the blocking of X is designed to stifle critical voices and democratic accountability in the country.
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