KARACHI: Video-sharing platform TikTok has taken down approximately 20 million videos in Pakistan for violating community guidelines, the company said on Monday, underscoring its resolve to effectively combat violations.
TikTok, a social media app that allows users to create and share short-form videos, made the disclosure in its report for the first quarter of the year. The platform has become extremely popular among younger generations, with over a billion active users worldwide.
However, this is not the first time that TikTok has removed videos from Pakistan. In July 2023, the video-sharing app had taken action against 11.7 million videos from Pakistan for the same reason.
“In Pakistan alone, the platform took action against 20,207,878 videos for breaching its community guidelines in the first quarter,” TikTok said in a statement on Monday, following the release of its Community Guidelines Enforcement Report 2024.
In the past, Pakistani authorities have banned the video-sharing service several times, with the first ban instituted in October 2020 over what was described as widespread complaints about allegedly “immoral, obscene, and vulgar” content on the app.
The service has been prohibited from operating in the country thrice more than 15 months since then. In November 2021, a Pakistani court finally reversed the ban after TikTok assured the government it would control the spread of objectionable content.
TikTok said the latest report highlighted the platform’s commitment to transparency, safety and inclusivity apart from how the company reflected its dedication to building trust and ensuring a safe platform for its global community.
The video platform removed 166,997,307 videos worldwide during the Jan-March period of 2024, of which 129,335,793 were identified through an automated detection technology, whereas 6,042,287 videos were reinstated, according to the report. The platform “removed and filtered” 976,479,946 comments also, using the safety tools.
“TikTok aggressively pursued spam accounts and related content, implementing robust measures to prevent the proliferation of automated spam accounts,” the company said, highlighting that 93.9 percent of videos violating guidelines were removed within 24 hours of posting with the removal rate resting at 99.8 percent globally.
TikTok also deleted 21,639,414 accounts suspected of belonging to children under the age of 13, the company said.
TikTok says took down 20 million videos in Pakistan this year for violating guidelines
https://arab.news/b4k3g
TikTok says took down 20 million videos in Pakistan this year for violating guidelines
- The video-sharing platform made the disclosure in its report for the first quarter of the year
- The app has been banned in Pakistan several times in past over ‘immoral, obscene’ content
Karachi-bound bus crashes in fog, killing five in eastern Pakistan
- Motorway closure forced the bus onto an alternate route, unfamiliar to the driver
- Pakistan weather office reports visibility as low as 30 meters in parts of Punjab
ISLAMABAD: At least five people were killed and around 28 injured early on Wednesday when a passenger bus traveling from Rawalpindi to Karachi plunged into a ravine near Dhok Pathan in eastern Pakistan, after the driver diverted from a closed motorway due to dense fog, police said.
Poor visibility during Pakistan’s winter months frequently makes long-distance travel hazardous, prompting authorities to shut motorways and major roads during severe fog to prevent accidents. However, traffic mishaps involving both light and heavy vehicles are not uncommon during such conditions, sometimes triggering multi-vehicle pile-ups.
“A passenger bus traveling from Rawalpindi to Karachi plunged into a ravine near Dhok Pathan, killing at least five people and injuring around 28 others,” Adeel Sarfraz, a senior police officer and station house officer in the area near Chakwal, told Arab News over the phone.
“The accident occurred at around 2 a.m.,” he added. “Since the motorway was closed due to dense fog, the driver diverted the bus onto the GT [Grand Trunk] Road. However, the driver was unfamiliar with the route, and poor visibility caused by the fog led to the accident.”
Winter fog is a recurring hazard across Pakistan’s plains, particularly in Punjab and upper Sindh, where conditions can deteriorate sharply during late night and early morning hours.
Data shared by the Pakistan Meteorological Department earlier in the day showed extremely low visibility across several districts, with levels dropping to 30 meters in Narowal and Sheikhupura, 40 meters in Gujranwala and 50 meters in Faisalabad, Sialkot Airport and Toba Tek Singh.
Levels of 100 meters were reported in cities including Okara, Rahim Yar Khan, Bahawalpur and Sargodha, while some southern Punjab districts recorded relatively better conditions at around 200 meters.
The weather office warned that moderate to dense fog is likely to persist over much of Punjab, upper Sindh and plain areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, advising travelers — especially those driving on highways and motorways — to exercise caution during nighttime and early morning hours.
Road accidents are also common in Pakistan due to poor infrastructure, speeding and limited enforcement of safety regulations, with fog-related incidents adding to seasonal risks during winter.
