Gadgets Now: Google, Facebook and Twitter threaten to leave Pakistan over new rules. “Internet and technology companies have threatened to leave Pakistan after the government granted blanket powers to authorities to censor digital content, a move critics say was aimed at curtailing freedom of expression in the conservative Islamic nation.”
Pakistan
Weekly Technology Times (Pakistan): Fawad Asks Opposition To Avoid Public Gatherings To Curb COVID-19
Weekly Technology Times (Pakistan): Fawad Asks Opposition To Avoid Public Gatherings To Curb COVID-19. “Chaudhry Fawad Said Opposition Parties Should Cooperate With Government & Avoid Public Gatherings As Corona Cases Are Increasing. All political parties should take a unified step to contain and control the second outbreak of deadly virus, he said while talking to a private news channel.”
ABC News: Pakistan lifts brief ban on Chinese social media app TikTok
ABC News: Pakistan lifts brief ban on Chinese social media app TikTok. “Pakistan’s media regulatory agency said Monday it lifted a temporary ban on the Chinese social media app TikTok ‘with some conditions.’ However, it gave no further details.”
CNN: Pakistan’s TikTok ban is about censorship, not China
CNN: Pakistan’s TikTok ban is about censorship, not China. “The ban is notable because, unlike countries such as India and the United States that have already gone after TikTok, Pakistan doesn’t have a tense political relationship with China. The two share close economic, diplomatic and military ties, and Pakistan is an integral part of China’s ambitious Belt and Road infrastructure initiative.”
SAMAA: Pakistan’s social media rules approved under new title
SAMAA: Pakistan’s social media rules approved under new title. “All social media companies such as TikTok, Facebook. Instagram and Twitter will have to put up community guidelines for its users. Platforms with more than half a million Pakistani users will have to get registered with thePTA and establish a registered office in the country within nine months of the implementation of the rules.”
Express-Tribune (Pakistan): Sindh to launch digital library on Thursday
Express-Tribune (Pakistan): Sindh to launch digital library on Thursday. “The Sindh culture department has developed a digital library based on interoperable system, through which readers will be able to access over 100 million books, research journals and articles sourced from libraries across the world. The library will be launched on Thursday and the initiative has been taken in line with Sindh High Court orders.” Sindh is a province in Pakistan.
New York Times: Trolls Flood Social Media in Pakistan Amid Virus Lockdown
New York Times: Trolls Flood Social Media in Pakistan Amid Virus Lockdown. “Toxic trending on Twitter has also taken aim at minorities, blaming the ethnic Hazaras for allegedly bringing the coronavirus to Pakistan from neighboring Iran. Like most Iranians, Hazaras are Shiites, and traditionally make pilgrimages to holy sites in Iran, which has the deadliest virus outbreak in the region. Some Pakistani pilgrims returning home were among the first reported cases of COVID-19 in Pakistan.”
Daily Pakistan: Facebook introduces new tool for Pakistan to limit fake information
Daily Pakistan: Facebook introduces new tool for Pakistan to limit fake information. “Facebook has launched a new product in Pakistan to help limit the spread of misinformation and to provide people using the platform with additional context before they share images that are more than a year old and that could be potentially harmful or misleading.”
Neowin: Pakistan issues final warning to TikTok over ‘immoral’ content, bans Bigo Live
Neowin: Pakistan issues final warning to TikTok over ‘immoral’ content, bans Bigo Live. “Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) issued a ‘final warning’ to TikTok on Monday over ‘immoral, obscene, and vulgar content’ posted on the short-form video app, in addition to blocking Bigo Live, a live-streaming app, for the same reason.”
Phys .org: Leopards spotted in Pakistan capital’s park as virus clears way
Phys .org: Leopards spotted in Pakistan capital’s park as virus clears way. “Leopards, jackals and other creatures living in Islamabad’s tree-covered hills have been enjoying a rare respite from the throngs of hikers and joggers that normally pack the trails. Rangers in the Pakistani capital’s Margalla Hills National Park saw animal activity increase soon after the city was locked down in March to counter the coronavirus.”
New York Times: Pakistan’s Deficit and Poverty Rate to Soar Due to Coronavirus
New York Times: Pakistan’s Deficit and Poverty Rate to Soar Due to Coronavirus. “Pakistan’s fiscal deficit will be significantly worse than projected this fiscal year, with the fallout from the novel coronavirus pandemic pushing millions into unemployment and poverty, according to government estimates reviewed by Reuters.”
The Diplomat: Pakistan’s Government and Military Are Crushing Dissent on Social Media
The Diplomat: Pakistan’s Government and Military Are Crushing Dissent on Social Media. “Even before the new rules, the digital situation in Pakistan was already quite authoritarian. That can easily be conveyed by the ranking given to Pakistan in the Freedom on the Net report compiled annually by Freedom House. For many years, the country has been ranked among the worst countries of the world on that index; Pakistan was among the 10 worst countries of the 65 surveyed in the 2019 Freedom on the Net report.”
New York Times: Facebook, Google and Twitter Rebel Against Pakistan’s Censorship Rules
New York Times: Facebook, Google and Twitter Rebel Against Pakistan’s Censorship Rules. “When Pakistan’s government unveiled some of the world’s most sweeping rules on internet censorship this month, global internet companies like Facebook, Google and Twitter were expected to comply or face severe penalties — including the potential shutdown of their services. Instead, the tech giants banded together and threatened to leave the country and its 70 million internet users in digital darkness.”
ProPakistani: Maroof International Hospital Hit with Severe Ransomware Attack
ProPakistani: Maroof International Hospital Hit with Severe Ransomware Attack. “Maroof International Hospital Islamabad’s entire computer network has been compromised in the wake of a massive ransomware attack. Maroof is one of the most expensive private hospitals in Islamabad.”
Dawn: CPJ slams new social media measures
Dawn: CPJ slams new social media measures. “A leading media rights watchdog has slammed new regulatory measures for social media platforms in Pakistan. According to a draft of the law, the new measures announced earlier this week would pave the way for allowing Pakistani authorities to ask for the removal of content, disable encryption, and demand companies open offices and host data centres inside the country.”