• Pakistan đã lắp đặt hệ thống quản lý web (WMS) cho phép chặn nội dung, giám sát và kiểm soát lưu lượng internet ở cấp cổng với lý do an ninh quốc gia. Chính phủ đã phân bổ hơn 108 triệu USD cho việc mua sắm và lắp đặt hệ thống lọc này.
• Tốc độ internet ở Pakistan giảm 30-40% vào giữa tháng 8, gây hỗn loạn cho các doanh nghiệp và cá nhân phụ thuộc vào kết nối nhanh và ổn định.
• Các nhà hoạt động quyền kỹ thuật số và các nguồn tin từ ngành công nghiệp và chính phủ gọi việc lắp đặt này là một hình thức kiểm duyệt. Một số người nói Pakistan đang đi theo bước chân của Trung Quốc với "Tường lửa vĩ đại".
• Các nhà cung cấp dịch vụ internet Pakistan đang sử dụng công nghệ kiểm tra gói sâu (DPI), tương tự như Tường lửa vĩ đại của Trung Quốc, cho phép họ phân tích và kiểm soát lưu lượng mạng dựa trên nội dung.
• Sự gián đoạn đang ảnh hưởng đến nền kinh tế đang gặp khó khăn. Hiệp hội Phần mềm Pakistan ước tính thiệt hại kinh tế có thể lên tới 300 triệu USD do mất tốc độ internet.
• Hơn 100.000 lao động tự do phụ thuộc vào internet để kiếm việc làm đang bị ảnh hưởng nghiêm trọng. Nhiều người đã chuyển sang sử dụng mạng riêng ảo (VPN) để vượt qua kiểm duyệt internet.
• Chính phủ đã bắt buộc đăng ký VPN từ tháng 8, yêu cầu người dùng đăng nhập vào cổng trực tuyến do PTA phát triển. Điều này sẽ làm giảm quyền riêng tư và tăng giám sát.
• Các nhà hoạt động quyền kỹ thuật số tin rằng việc sử dụng WMS và đàn áp VPN là một phần trong nỗ lực của chính phủ nhằm kiểm soát sự bất đồng chính kiến trên mạng xã hội. X (Twitter cũ) đã bị chặn từ tháng 2 với lý do an ninh quốc gia.
• Việc lắp đặt tường lửa và đình chỉ internet cũng gây khó khăn cho các nhà báo trong việc tiếp cận thông tin và thực hiện công việc kiểm chứng thông tin.
📌 Pakistan triển khai tường lửa Internet, gây thiệt hại kinh tế ước tính 300 triệu USD và ảnh hưởng tới hơn 100.000 lao động tự do. Chính phủ viện lý do an ninh quốc gia, trong khi các nhà phê bình coi đây là hành động kiểm duyệt và hạn chế tự do internet.
https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Telecommunication/Pakistan-installs-firewall-in-censorship-drive-hitting-businesses
Pakistan installs firewall in censorship drive, hitting businesses Critics say move curbs freedoms, but government claims national security at risk Gig workers dependent on online jobs will be badly affected by internet disruptions. © Reuters ADNAN AAMIR, Contributing writer September 4, 2024 10:28 JST ISLAMABAD -- Sajida, a 23-year-old freelance digital content creator, first noticed that WhatsApp stopped working for her in the second week of August. She could not download media files and send voice notes. "I rely on WhatsApp to send and receive data from my clients, which I then use for content creation," she told Nikkei Asia. "Disruption of this feature on WhatsApp meant I simply could not work." She soon found out she wasn't the only one suffering. The internet speed in Pakistan plummeted by 30% to 40% in mid-August, according to industry body Wireless and Internet Service Providers Association, creating chaos for businesses and individuals who rely heavily on fast and reliable connectivity. While WhatsApp has resumed service as normal, overall internet speed is still slow. A Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) spokesperson told Nikkei Asia, "The ongoing internet slowdown across the country is mainly due to a fault in two of the seven international submarine cables connecting Pakistan internationally." In late August, the cabinet told Parliament that it had installed a web management system (WMS), which allows the local authority to block content, monitor and control internet traffic at a gateway level on national security grounds. The government has allocated more than $108 million for the acquisition and installation of this filtering system, according to local media reports. Digital rights activists and industry and government sources called the installation a form of censorship. "The old method to block websites in Pakistan was primitive and not scalable to block a large number of websites," a representative of the broadband sector told Nikkei on condition of anonymity. "That's why the government has installed [WMS] to block websites and services en masse." Some say Pakistan is following in China's footsteps. Beijing has deployed a firewall -- dubbed the 'Great Firewall' by critics, a play on what is arguably China's most famous structure -- since 1998 to prevent residents from accessing information it regards as detrimental or potentially destabilizing. "Pakistani [internet service providers] are using DPI (deep pocket inspection) technology, similar to China's Great Firewall, which allows them to analyze and control network traffic based on its content," said Shahzad Ahmad, country director of Bytes for All, a think tank that focuses on information and communication technologies. Media reports said Pakistan has already installed the firewall and conducted two trial runs. "The term 'firewall' is being used in Pakistan by taking inspiration from China. However, Pakistan's filtering system will be in no way near that of China," a businessperson involved in cybersecurity services who did not want to be named told Nikkei. PTA did not respond to specific requests for comment about the firewall. A government official involved in information technology told Nikkei on condition of anonymity that criticism of the government has been blown out of proportion. "[The firewall] will defend Pakistan's critical digital infrastructure against cyberattacks," the official said. The official declined to comment on whether China helped in setting up the firewall. The disruption is hitting the already-struggling economy. IT industry body Pakistan Software Houses Association estimated that the Pakistani economy's losses could reach $300 million as a result of the loss of internet speed, including recent disruptions. Mutaher Khan, co-founder of Data Darbar, a startup on private-market intelligence, said telecommunications companies face losing vast sums from internet disruptions. They "will suffer with an estimated average of $5.4 million in the case of a full-day shutdown," he said. Khan pointed also to the more than 100,000 gig workers who depend on the internet for jobs. An employee of the Pakistan Freelancers Association, a platform and support group for freelancers in Karachi. Slow internet speeds will be disruptive to freelancers. © Reuters For a time, many resorted to using virtual private networks (VPNs) to circumvent internet censorship. In response, the government made VPN registrations mandatory from August, requiring users to sign in to an online portal developed by the PTA. Experts believe that the crackdown on VPNs will make it harder for individuals and organizations to bypass censorship. "This [VPN] registration process involves submitting identification and justifying the use of a VPN, which will significantly impact internet usage in Pakistan by reducing privacy and increasing surveillance," said Ahmad of Bytes for All. Digital rights activists believe the usage of WMS and crackdown on VPNs is part of the government's effort to control dissent on social media. X, formerly known as Twitter, has been blocked since February on what the government said were national security grounds. "It seems that the purpose of Pakistani firewall is to limit the dissemination in online spaces, particularly curbing political expression," Ahmad said. The installation of the alleged firewall and internet suspensions have also given journalists a hard time. Ghazala Yousafzai, founder of Factcheckly, an independent fact-checking organization based in Islamabad, said her work has been restricted by the censorship. "Journalists rely on unrestricted access to information to uncover stories and present a balanced perspective and fact-checking operations rely on quick access to online content," she said. "Firewalls delay this process, limit the sources I can consult and sometimes block access to critical information altogether. This affects the timeliness and comprehensiveness of my reporting."