For having “illegal and nasty content,” the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) blacklisted 1.1 million URLs in 2022.
This information was provided in an annual report that the authority released earlier this week.
Many internet materials were found to be improper or to go against societal norms and values.
This is clear from the fact that, in the course of the year, the regulator processed 905,009 complaints, the majority of which were blocked because they involved morality and decency.
In order to address this issue, the PTA set up a dedicated cell to deal with public and governmental concerns against online content.
187 mobile applications that were being used for criminal purposes were included among the blacklisted URLs.
The PTA has been attempting to address this issue by urging social media businesses to register with the authority in accordance with the “removal and blocking of unlawful online content (process, oversight, and safeguards) rules, 2021” in addition to blocking URLs.
In order to ensure that social media firms follow these regulations, the PTA has also started the registration process.
The PTA has often issued advisories through SMSs, social media, and print media to the public in an effort to further assist them and encourage them to report any illegal online content to the PTA for appropriate action.
Defamation (7,713), sectarian/hate speech (40,536), proxy (10,219), defence of Pakistan (36,900), glory of Islam (78,119), contempt of courts (8,709), and other complaints were also handled by PTA for banning (6,464).
