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Despite facing resistance, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) continues to advance efforts to regulate VPN applications, mandating that only declared, registered, and approved VPN providers may legally operate within Pakistan. Providers failing to comply risk being blocked by the authorities.
Recently, Pakistan issued the first round of operational licenses to three companies, authorizing them to offer VPN services. The PTA has urged all VPN providers operating within the country to apply for these licenses to avoid disruptions or service bans in the future.
This initiative is grounded in a newly introduced licensing framework unveiled by the PTA in December 2024, which specifically targets VPN service providers. The framework aims to formalize the use of VPN technology, requiring providers to obtain proper authorization before delivering services.
In its latest announcement, the PTA confirmed that it has begun issuing licenses to Virtual Private Network service providers under the newly defined “Data Service Provider” category. As part of this process, three companies have been granted category licenses for offering VPN services.
The new regulations primarily apply to domestic entities offering VPN or proxy services to Pakistani citizens, rather than foreign companies that are more difficult to monitor. To be eligible for a license, providers must at a minimum be registered businesses within Pakistan, aligning with local compliance requirements.
A significant number of users in Pakistan rely on VPNs to access social media platforms such as X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and BlueSky. Consequently, VPN services hold considerable market potential within the country.
Although the PTA’s new rules have not yet been strictly enforced, parallels can be drawn to India’s 2022 regulation, which required all VPN providers to register. Non-compliant providers were subsequently blocked, leading to intermittent service disruptions. Pakistan may eventually adopt a similarly forceful approach to compel VPN providers to register and adhere to regulatory standards.
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