Pakistan tests China-like digital ‘firewall’ to tighten online surveillance

The new monitoring system could give the government unprecedented insights into citizens’ online use.

Islamabad, Pakistan – Pakistan’s government has deployed Chinese technology to build what some senior officials familiar with the project are calling a new, national internet “firewall” that will allow authorities to monitor online traffic and regulate the use of popular apps with greater control than before.

The project aims to upgrade the government’s web monitoring capabilities at the country’s main internet gateways, as well as at the data centres of mobile service and major internet service providers.

Senior executives from two internet service providers (ISPs) and an official from the country’s security establishment told Al Jazeera that trials of this new firewall, installed as part of Pakistan’s internet infrastructure, were responsible for a spate of complaints of poor internet connectivity in the country in recent months.

Officially, though, government officials, while acknowledging that they are tightening the country’s online monitoring structure, have denied that this is to blame for slowdowns in internet speed.

The trial of the new firewall comes at a time of heightened political tensions in Pakistan. The country’s authorities have suspended mobile internet and blocked several VPNs amid a massive protest launched by supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is under arrest since August 2023 over a spate of charges. The protesters, who have arrived in Islamabad despite court orders against their agitation, are demanding Khan’s release. At least six security personnel have died in clashes with the protesters so far.