Blog Archives

Latest Posts

Monthly

Categories

All Posts in Digital Rights Tracker

January 28, 2025 - Comments Off on Senate passes PECA Amendments and Digital Nation Pakistan Bill 2025

Senate passes PECA Amendments and Digital Nation Pakistan Bill 2025

Pakistan’s Senate approved the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (2025) amendments and the Digital Nation Pakistan Bill on Tuesday, 28 January. The PECA amendments had earlier been approved by the National Assembly and Senate Committee on Interior. Similarly, the Senate Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication had passed the Digital Nation Pakistan Bill 2025 by majority vote.

The PECA amendments establish harsher penalties for disinformation, including up to three years imprisonment and Rs2 million fines. It also establishes the Digital Rights Protection Authority (DRPA) to regulate social media, investigate complaints, and remove unlawful content. The amendments also broaden the definition of social media platforms.

Journalists, accompanied by PPP Senator Sherry Rehman staged a walkout of the Senate gallery amid the passage of the amendments, and opposition members tore copies of the Bill in protest. PTI Senator Shibli Faraz criticised the lack of judicial capacity to handle fake news cases.

Separately, Law Minister Azam Nazir Tarar tabled the Digital Nation Pakistan Bill (DNPB) 2025 after it was earlier approved by the Senate Committee on IT on 28 January. Just like PECA, DNPB was also quickly approved by majority vote amid objections. Members of the opposition raised concerns over lack of consultation leading up to the Senate meeting. JUIF Senator Kamran Murtaza accused the government of undermining provincial autonomy and centralising authority in Islamabad.

Both pieces of legislation now only require the President’s assent to be enacted as laws.

January 28, 2025 - Comments Off on Senate approves PECA Amendments amidst opposition uproar

Senate approves PECA Amendments amidst opposition uproar

Pakistan’s Senate formally approved the controversial amendments pertaining to the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (2025) on 28 January. The recent development took place a day after the Senate Standing Committee on Interior approved the Prevention of Electronic Crimes (Amendment) Bill, 2025 on Monday, 27 January amidst public outcry over the changes made without stakeholder input. The bill will now be sent to the President for formal approval before it becomes an act, a merely ceremonial process. The proposed PECA amendments include three years imprisonment for spreading fake news, creation of a social media protection authority for regulating online content, as well as the creation of a new investigation agency called the National Cybercrime Investigation Agency.  The highly debated and criticised amendments to PECA were fast-tracked through the National Assembly last week.

Throughout recent weeks, and especially in the last week, journalists, human rights defenders, civil society, and the opposition protested these controversial amendments proposed to the country’s cyber crime laws, which threaten to curtail freedom of expression and promote mass censorship and surveillance by the State. Last week’s protests culminated in members of the opposition raising slogans and banging desks, and journalists staging an organised walk-out from the press gallery during the Friday Senate hearing. The Senate committee (Interior) meeting held on Monday also featured opposition from journalists present, whereas the Chair of Senate Committee on Interior Faisal Saleem Rehman in his opening remarks claimed that the Senate committee had not received any written feedback, concerns or comments from any journalist body. The sole opposition to the amendments from political parties in this meeting came from the JUIF’s Senator Kamran Murtaza. Senator Irfan Siddiqui of PML-N downplayed concerns about the amendments, stating there was “no need to fear” the changes. While criticising the lack of consultation with journalists before the bill, he assured that if the law is misused against the media, he would stand with journalists.

January 27, 2025 - Comments Off on NTISB warns users to avoid 16 malicious VPN and AI browser extensions

NTISB warns users to avoid 16 malicious VPN and AI browser extensions

The National Telecom and Information Technology Security Board (NITSB) highlighted 16 potentially malicious browser extensions for users to avoid.

According to the NITSB, the extensions identified, which include VPN and AI extensions, contain potential threats of hacking and data breaches. The list of extensions identified includes AI Assistant — ChatGPT and Gemini for Chrome, Bard AI Chat Extension, GPT 4 Sum­mary with OpenAI, Search CoPilot AI Assistant for Chrome, Wayin AI, VPNCity, Internxt VPN, Vidniz Flex Video Rec­order, VidHelper Video Downloader, Bookmark Favicon Changer, UVoice, Reader Mode, Parrot Talks, Primus, Trackker — Online Keylogger Tool, AI Shop Buddy, and Rewards Search Automation.

These extensions were among the targets of a large-scale data and credential theft attack by hackers last month. The advisory by NITSB urged users to avoid these extensions, only use trusted and extensively-reviewed extensions, and to read permissions carefully before granting them.

The use of VPNs has skyrocketed in Pakistan since the X ban last February, which is a reason for the surge in demand for VPN browser extensions as well.

January 27, 2025 - Comments Off on Senate Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication approves Digital Nation Pakistan Bill 2025

Senate Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication approves Digital Nation Pakistan Bill 2025

The Senate Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication approved the Digital Nation Pakistan Bill 2025 with a majority vote on Monday, 27 January. The Committee meeting was chaired by Senator Palwasha Khan.

The Digital Nation Pakistan Bill, which was introduced in the Senate by IT Minister Shaza Khawaja, is one in a series of measures being undertaken by the MOITT to transform Pakistan into “a holistic digital ecosystem”. The Bill calls for the establishment of three bodies: the National Digital Commission (NDC), to be headed by the Prime Minister, to oversee the development and implementation of the National Digital Master Plan; the Pakistan Digital Authority (PDA) to carry out the implementation; and the Strategic Oversight Committee (SOC), to be headed by the IT Minister, to act as an ‘impartial’ oversight body.

The Bill was opposed in the Senate hearing by senators from JUI and PTI, including JUI Senator Kamran Murtaza, who proposed amendments to Section 7 of the Bill while questioning the urgency with which the Bill had progressed through the Houses. He recommended that the PDA contain four members instead of two; one from each province. Senator Manzoor Kakar stressed the need for fair provincial funding under the proposed law. Senator Palwasha Khan raised concerns over the lack of data protection legislation in Pakistan, and the deprioritisation of that over this Bill.

Despite the debate and concerns raised, the Bill was approved with a majority vote. Senator Murtaza’s proposed amendments did not gain approval.

January 24, 2025 - Comments Off on WhatsApp group admin arrested in Pakpattan

WhatsApp group admin arrested in Pakpattan

A WhatsApp group administrator from Pakpattan was arrested under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016 (PECA) for allegedly permitting a post insulting the Chief Minister of Punjab Maryam Nawaz.

The suspect who allegedly made the post and the group admin were booked under Section 20 (Offences against the dignity of a natural person) of PECA and Section 509 of the Pakistan Penal Code. According to a statement issued by the Pakpattan District Police Officer Javed Chaddar, authorities took notice of the post after it went viral on social media. The post was described by the DPO as “malicious and insulting against the Chief Minister”.

This arrest comes on the heels of the passage of the controversial amendments to the PECA by the National Assembly on the same day as the arrest. The new provision, Section 26(A), under which the suspect and group admin were booked, penalises online perpetrators of “fake news”. The provision reads:

“Whoever intentionally disseminates, publicly exhibits, or transmits any information through any information system, that he knows or has reason to believe to be false or fake and likely to cause or create a sense of fear, panic or disorder or unrest in general public or society shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend upto three years or with fine which may extend to Rs2m or with both.”

January 23, 2025 - Comments Off on Journalists, Opposition walk out of NA as controversial PECA amendments passed

Journalists, Opposition walk out of NA as controversial PECA amendments passed

Pakistan’s National Assembly has passed controversial amendments to the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), to which journalists and members of the opposition PTI party, who both walked out of the National Assembly, walked out in protest. These amendments to the PECA have been condemned since they were first leaked, not just as the overly broad language could be interpreted to further attack freedom of expression, but because drafts of the bill had not been shared or discussed with stakeholders, which has been heavily criticised by activists and journalists. The bill will now be sent to the Pakistani Senate for a final approval.

The government has for several months claimed that the new provisions are necessary to tackle “fake news” or disinformation, with people accused of such to be “punished with imprisonment which may extend upto three years or with fine which may extend to Rs2m or with both.”

In addition to proposing the creation of a Social Media Protection and Regulatory Authority (SMPRA), the amendments have expanded the definition of “social media platforms” to include the “tools” or software used to access said platforms. This expansion of the definition of “social media platforms”, even before the bill’s passing, was widely regarded as a vehicle to provide legal cover to future attempts to ban “unregistered” local VPNs – a legal opinion by the Ministry of Law had thwarted previous VPN ban attempts.

Nighat Dad, Digital Rights Foundation’s Executive Director, said that the passing of the amendments came as a “shock”, and that civil society organisations and other stakeholders had not been shown any drafts, with the result that the final version “suddenly came out of nowhere”. In addition to remarking that the bill should not have been passed owing to the “broad and ambiguous” powers it gave to authorities – already a serious  and ongoing concern about the PECA – Ms. Dad also pointed out its definitions concerning “false and fake information” were suspect – notable given that global authorities have not been able to provide consistent and universally applicable definitions themselves.

January 22, 2025 - Comments Off on PML-N, PPP Agree On PECA Amendments

PML-N, PPP Agree On PECA Amendments

Two of Pakistan’s ruling parties, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), have come together on amending the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), despite disagreements especially with regards to social media control – a controversial point of contention and penalties. As per proposed legislation under this agreement, social media usage will be regulated via a new government authority to be established.

 

The new authority will have the responsibility of determining what constitutes disinformation or “fake news”, and will have the power to impose penalties for disseminating disinformation – a maximum of three years in prison, and fines. The length of the sentence was one of the key points that the PPP and PML-N strongly disagreed upon, as the latter had originally proposed sentence of ten years. The new authority will have powers similar to, according to ARY News, “the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), and the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA).”

January 22, 2025 - Comments Off on Digital Nation Pakistan Bill is Approved: Government

Digital Nation Pakistan Bill is Approved: Government

The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on IT and Telecommunications approved the Digital Nation Pakistan Bill (DNPB, though not unanimously. Tabled in mid-December 2024 but then deferred for further review, the DNPB has been promoted by the government, particularly the Minister for IT, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, as making “services more accessible through mobile phones, reducing queues in government offices”. The Minister also asserted that the Bill would not centralise data, and that “no agency, including NADRA, holds centralised data.”

 

Standing Committee members critical of the DNPB in its current form questioned the need for a Digital Commission. They also argued against implementing the Bill without tackling internet disruptions and shoddy internet infrastructure, or implementing data protection legislation first.

January 22, 2025 - Comments Off on Starlink must apologise, requires security clearance to operate in Pakistan: Senate

Starlink must apologise, requires security clearance to operate in Pakistan: Senate

The Chairman of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) affirmed that Starlink, the satellite internet network owned by Elon Musk, can only receive a license to operate in Pakistan if it is granted security clearance. Speaking to the Senate Standing Committee on IT, PTA Chairman Hafee Rehman said that Starlink had applied for a license in February 2022, and that the Ministry of Interior would examine the case for security clearance. Starlink must register with the Pakistan State Bank and Pakistan’s Securities Exchange Commission (SECP) as part of the process, said the PTA Chairman.

 

Members of the Standing Committee suggested that any granting of a license to Starlink should be provisional on an apology from Musk, for what were seen as “anti-Pakistan” remarks. Senator Afnan Ullah Khan, for example, said that “rhe PTA must consider Musk’s campaign against Pakistan before issuing a license. He should apologize for his statements before any further steps are taken.” According to Samaa TV, furthermore, aside from the aforementioned wait for approval, tweets by Musk about awaiting approval could be construed as misleading and inaccurate, as they inferred direct engagement.

January 21, 2025 - Comments Off on Interior Ministry to oversee PECA

Interior Ministry to oversee PECA

The Government of Pakistan has amended the Rules of Business 1973 to shift responsibilities regarding the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) from the Ministry of Information Technology & Information (MOITT) to the Ministry of the Interior, during a federal cabinet meeting chaired by Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif. In the context of governance in Pakistan, “Rules of Business” refers to the rules by which all “business” or “all work done by the Federal Government” is to be undertaken, as per relevant ministries. The government has not as yet updated the “Rules of Business 1973” on its websites as yet, so the version embedded above is the most up to date as of January 22, 2025.

 

News reports have not thus far discussed what this shift in ministerial oversight for PECA might mean in regards to the rights of freedom of expression and to privacy, especially in the light of proposed amendments to the PECA that seek to provide legal grounds for banning VPNs and other means of accessing social media.