Islamabad, Aug 27: Under its whitelisting initiative, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has registered 20,437 Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), representing 1,422 businesses. Of these, 1,286 VPN corporations own 19,840 VPNs, and 136 freelancing companies have registered 180 VPNs.
417 VPNs connected to the Pakistan Software Houses Association (PASHA) have been registered by PTA. This registration drive is a component of a larger national effort to control VPN usage.
Clause 37 (1) of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016 requires the PTA to prohibit illegal online content, according to a document from the IT Ministry. Nevertheless, users may still access prohibited content through VPNs, which encrypt traffic and route it through foreign servers, circumventing state-imposed restrictions, even in the face of geo-blocking measures at the gateway level.
The PTA faces difficulties as a result of this behavior since VPN users can utilize private traffic to get around gateway controls and circumvent the country’s prohibition on prohibited content.
According to the Monitoring and Reconciliation of Telephonic Traffic (MRTT) Regulation 2010, clause 6, the PTA has begun registering VPNs since December 2010 in accordance with a regulation issued on December 2, 2010, according to the IT Ministry. Additionally, courts have ordered the PTA to take all necessary steps to successfully prohibit illegal content.
VPNs are frequently utilized for secure private network management by reputable companies including software houses, call centers, and foreign embassies, despite the difficulties they provide. In order to maintain balance and prevent abuse, the PTA has released notices for VPN registration to the general public.
The PTA has given the Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) authority over IP whitelisting in order to oversee “One Window Operations” for call centers and independent contractors, according to the Ministry of Information Technology (IT).
PTA has collaborated closely with stakeholders like the Ministry of IT, PSEB, and P@SHA to streamline VPN registration for businesses and independent contractors. Nonetheless, the PTA will have a difficult time successfully carrying out its PECA duties without restricting VPN abuse.
