PESHAWAR: The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has announced the blocking of approximately 1.3 million URLs due to “anti-Islam, indecent, and immoral” content as of July 19, 2024.
In a report presented to the Peshawar High Court, the PTA revealed that its web monitoring system evaluated around 1.38 million URLs, ultimately blocking 93.84% of them—totaling 1.303 million. This report was part of ongoing legal proceedings concerning a petition calling for a total ban on TikTok in Pakistan, citing the platform’s inability to curb the upload of “blasphemous and indecent” material.
During the hearing, PTA counsel Jehanzeb Mehsud provided a detailed report in response to an earlier court order. The petitioner, lawyer Imran Khan, requested that the court direct the PTA, Federal Investigation Agency, and the information ministry to impose a permanent ban on TikTok due to repeated violations of community guidelines and various legal statutes, including the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) and the Pakistan Penal Code.
The court adjourned the hearing as the petitioner’s counsel was unavailable.
The PTA’s report detailed the processing of 1.03 million URLs classified as “decency and immorality,” with over 1.02 million blocked. Additionally, the authority processed 115,401 URLs related to the “glory of Islam,” blocking 96,622, and addressed 125,134 URLs concerning national security, blocking 91,889.
Other categories included 7,152 URLs blocked for contempt of court, 10,929 for defamation and impersonation, 10,250 for proxy violations, and 53,915 for sectarian and hate speech.
The PTA maintains a comprehensive database of 1.38 million URLs, regularly updated with blocking statuses. Notably, the report indicated significant numbers of blocked URLs across popular platforms: 147,569 of 171,744 on Facebook, 125,600 of 128,626 on TikTok, 53,872 of 92,945 on Twitter (now X), 53,162 of 61,719 on YouTube, and 22,357 of 26,000 on Instagram. In total, 894,257 URLs on other apps and websites were processed, with 888,177 blocked.
Since 2020, TikTok has reportedly removed 113,133 pieces of content deemed “immoral, indecent, or against the glory of Islam.” In 2024 alone, TikTok blocked 24,800 of 25,267 flagged items, including 23,407 related to immorality and 1,393 regarding the glory of Islam.
The PTA has also taken steps to raise public awareness about “blasphemous and immoral content” on social media, particularly on TikTok. Following court directives, the PTA communicated with TikTok management regarding the presence of objectionable content and urged enhanced measures for detection and removal.
The petitioner noted that Pakistan has approximately 54.4 million TikTok users, placing it among the top seven countries in app usage. He argued that the platform is misused to spread “anti-Islamic, vulgar, indecent, sectarian, and disrespectful content,” violating constitutional and legal standards.
