Leo S.
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Verified by
Adam B.
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Last updated:
July 30, 2024
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(0)
Pakistan is a country famous for its incredibly strict laws on censorship and the fatal punishment that can be handed out to its citizens because of their online activity. Personal privacy online is a major concern in the country that has a vast amount of digital surveillance. That being said, Pakistan does have access to some of the major streaming services in the world, like Netflix and Amazon Prime, despite the obvious cultural barriers that they may face. Using a VPN is essential for personal safety and security when on the internet in Pakistan; fortunately, there are some great services available to give users a helping hand.
Internet access in Pakistan is heavily monitored by the government and due to the lack of privacy laws, being online isn’t as safe or secure as it can be in most of the rest of the world. Websites in Pakistan are frequently blocked, and the courts can decide to block access to them seemingly on a whim, with some major news sites and social media services suddenly disappearing from the internet for days on end before reappearing without any justification.
However, Pakistan does have access to some of the big streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime, and iflix is also popular in the country. Many of Pakistan’s major TV channels also have live streams like Geo News and Samaa TV, and radio services like Radio Pakistan. Having great streaming services is all well and good and but Pakistan’s internet speed lags behind that of other countries significantly.
Although Pakistan’s constitution says that privacy is a human right, that doesn’t stop its government from conducting mass surveillance. In 2016 Pakistan passed the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, which was apparently designed to combat terrorism, but its jurisdiction stretches further than that. The law allows for real-time collection and recording of data and gives the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority the power to block or remove access to online information. The country also suffers from its extremely lax data protection laws, although there are plans to reform them as of early 2019.
It’s difficult to mention the laws in Pakistan without bringing attention to the country’s extremely strict blasphemy law. Posts on social media that are judged to be blasphemous are subject to the death penalty and people have been sentenced because of their social media activity in the past.
Internet censorship in Pakistan is extensive and it’s not a surprise to see major websites disappear for a short period of time without warning. Websites can be blocked during political protests or during religious events. Many websites are also permanently blocked in Pakistan with the government blocking websites that are either said to be a national security threat, have content related to blasphemy, or have what is deemed to be anti-Islamic content. Other sites blocked in Pakistan include content that is critical of the military, as well as online gambling, pornography, and even information about sexual health and education.
YouTube was famously blocked in the country from 2012 until 2016 when it had to produce a local version that complied with the local laws. In the event of a mass protest then social media is likely to be taken down, like when Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube were all blocked in November, 2017.
Despite the country’s harsh censorship laws, there is a plethora of streaming content that is available. Netflix was the pioneer of streaming in the country and the Malaysian service iflix is popular in the region. Amazon Prime Video is also available as well as smaller services such as STARZ PLAY, but Hulu and iPlayer are two big services that aren’t available in Pakistan. Spotify has never been available in Pakistan due to licensing issues but SoundCloud is a common alternative.
Although they are legal, getting a VPN can be sometimes be tricky if you’re already using a Pakistani IP address. PayPal isn’t available in the country, so for anonymity, users should try paying in cryptocurrencies. Also, some services like HideMyAss and VPNTunnel are blocked despite their legality. However, there are some very good servers out there than can do the trick.
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