KARACHI: Pakistan experienced a dramatic collapse in Internet access on Tuesday, with connectivity falling to just 20% of normal levels, according to NetBlocks, a global observatory for Internet governance.
This follows a pattern of frequent Internet throttling and service outages in Pakistan, which human rights observers and digital-rights activists have long decried as tools for censorship and political control. Authorities deny this.
“Metrics show a major disruption to Internet connectivity across #Pakistan with high impact to backbone operator PTCL; overall national connectivity is down to 20 percent of ordinary levels.” NetBlocks said in a post on X.
At the time of the filing of this report, state telecom authorities, including PTCL and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, had not responded publicly to the latest outage, even as millions of users remain offline.
There are approximately 116 million Internet users in Pakistan, according to DataReportal’s Digital 2025 report. This figure represents about 45.7 percent of the total population.
Internet shutdowns significantly impact Pakistan’s economy, causing substantial financial losses and hindering economic growth. In 2024, Pakistan experienced the highest economic losses globally due to Internet disruptions, totaling $1.62 billion.
In a separate statement, the Wireless and Internet Service Providers Association of Pakistan (WISPAP) condemned the recurring breakdowns, calling them a “national failure.”
Its chairman, Shahzad Arshad, said the situation reflected years of neglect and overdependence on a few backbone providers.
“Internet outages are no longer rare accidents in Pakistan — they’ve become a recurring reality. For two-thirds of the country to go dark in 2025, on the very date we saw the same collapse in 2022, should ring alarm bells at every level of government,” Arshad said. “We cannot build a digital economy on a foundation this fragile.”
Arshad stressed that a reliable Internet is now as essential as electricity.
“Freelancers, students, hospitals, banks — all depend on uninterrupted connectivity. Every hour offline costs Pakistan millions and damages our reputation internationally.”
Internet disruptions, whether total shutdowns or selective throttling, have become increasingly common in Pakistan, especially during times of political unrest or protests.
The latest disruption comes months after Pakistan confirmed the installation of a national Internet firewall, a centralized filtering system designed to monitor, restrict and control online content. Officials have framed the firewall as a tool for cybersecurity and “harmful content” moderation, but digital rights groups warn it enables large-scale censorship and surveillance of political speech.
Pakistan has also blocked access to major platforms in the recent past. Social media site X (formerly Twitter) remained banned from February 2024, days after a general election, until May 2025, after opposition parties accused authorities of rigging the polls and used the platform to amplify their allegations. The ban was lifted in May this year.
