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Pakistan Faces Growing Digital Security Crisis as Citizen Data Sold on Dark Web

20 September, 2025 16:20

Pakistan is facing a serious digital security crisis, as the head of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Major General (R) Hafeezur Rehman, confirmed that citizens’ sensitive personal data is being traded on the dark web.

The PTA chief admitted that even after an internal investigation in 2022, data leaks are still happening. The situation has become so alarming that the Ministry of Interior has now launched its own probe. “The problem is real, and the danger is growing,” he said.

Senator Afnan Ullah raised concerns in the Senate, revealing that stolen data from various institutions is being sold in bulk, making it a business worth tens of millions. In a shocking moment, the Senate committee chairperson shared her own experience, saying she received a call about a private bank payment that only her bank should know. “If this can happen to me, what chance does the common citizen have?” she said.

The most disturbing revelation was that the data of nearly 350,000 Hajj applicants had been leaked. The PTA chief called this a “serious issue” and urged the government to act fast.

While Rehman confirmed that telecom networks haven’t seen data leaks in the past two years, he said Pakistan urgently needs a national system to protect its people from cyber threats.

Senators criticized the government for delaying the long-promised data protection law. Senator Afnan Ullah called it a “national failure” and blamed the Ministry of IT for not moving fast enough. He even warned that the lack of data protection could lead to cyberattacks, citing Israel’s cyberattack on Iran, which he said was possible due to data collected from social media.

Other senators, including Manzoor Ahmed and Palwasha Khan, also criticized the government, especially Minister Shaza Fatima, for skipping important meetings.

To fix the crisis, Afnan Ullah proposed building a national data center with strong security. However, others raised doubts about whether Pakistan’s new cyber authority — the NCCIA — is capable of handling such a big responsibility.

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