PTA reveals reason behind internet disruption in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has revealed that a fault in the submarine cable is the reason behind the recent internet disruption in Pakistan, ARY News reported.

As per details, PTA Chairman, Hafiz Rahman, briefed the Standing Committee on Information Technology, chaired by Syed Aminul Haque, on the matter.

Syed Aminul Haq asked the PTA chairman to inform the public about the reasons for the disruption and whether a firewall system was in place.

The PTA chairman explained that 7.5 terabits of data come to Pakistan through one cable, and a fault in the submarine cable had caused the disruption.

He added that there are 7 fiber optic cables coming to Pakistan, and one of them is damaged, which is expected to be repaired by August 27.

The committee members asked questions about the use of VPNs and the impact of the disruption on local internet services. In response, the PTA Chairman clarified that the submarine cable fault had caused the disruption, and it was not a global issue, but specific to Pakistan’s cable.

READ: Slow internet sparks concerns among Pakistani freelancers

Earlier, Minister of State for IT, Shaza Fatima claimed that the widespread use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) caused internet disruption in Pakistan.

During a news conference in Islamabad, Shaza Fatima stated that the internet was neither blocked nor deliberately slowed down, but rather that the increased use of VPNs caused technical strain on the network.

She mentioned that as certain services became restricted, more users turned to VPNs, which she claimed negatively impacted internet speed in the country.

It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan is facing internet service disruption and the issues are linked to the implementation of internet firewalls, which was installed at a country’s main internet gateways to monitor and filter traffic. While these systems can control or block content on websites and social media platforms, authorities claim that, they also have the capability to trace the origin of objectionable material.