Pakistan denies slowing internet by building firewall – Capital Radio Malawi
13 February, 2025

Pakistan denies slowing internet by building firewall

Pakistan’s government has disputed claims it is building an internet firewall, causing painfully slow connections in the past few weeks.

Instead, it blamed the widespread use of secure connections or VPN (virtual private networks) for the crawling speeds.

The statement comes after business groups warned that poor connectivity could lead to a “mass exodus” of IT companies.

Shutting down the internet to crush dissent is a familiar move in regulators’ playbooks in Pakistan and other parts of Asia.

Since the riots sparked by former prime minister Imran Khan last year, the government has blocked social media platforms and throttled connection speeds as the battle for public support spilled over from the streets to the digital space.

The micro-blogging platform X has been blocked since the February elections due to “national security” concerns.

Khan’s party supporters are big users of X and he is the most popular Pakistani on the platformn, with nearly 21 million followers.

But Minister of State for Information Technology Shaza Fatima said on Sunday that the state was not behind the recent slowdown.

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