Islamabad, Pakistan – The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) began issuing licenses to Virtual Private Network (VPN) service providers Thursday under the reinstated Class Value Added Services (CVAS-Data) regime. This move follows previous attempts to regulate the VPN landscape in Pakistan,including warnings of bans,which proved unsuccessful.
In December 2023, the PTA announced a new strategy to register VPNs after earlier efforts to achieve compliance failed. The licensing aims to “streamline the provision of secure and lawful VPN services in Pakistan while ensuring compliance with national regulations and data security standards,” according to a PTA press release.
The PTA has initially granted class licenses to five companies: Alpha 3 Cubic Pvt Ltd (Steer Lucid), Zettabyte Pvt Ltd (Crest VPN), Nexilium Tech SMC-Pvt Ltd (Kestrel VPN), UKI Conic Solutions SMC-Pvt Ltd (quixure VPN), and Vision Tech 360 Pvt ltd (Kryptonyme VPN). A class license permits multiple users to operate under a standardized set of conditions without individual approvals.
These licensees are authorized to offer VPN services for legitimate and lawful purposes to both individuals and organizations. Users can now obtain services directly from these providers, eliminating the need to register IP addresses or mobile numbers with the PTA.
The PTA initially considered banning VPNs in November 2023 due to a lack of legal framework, but later reversed that decision. In February 2024, the authority issued licenses to two companies, initially restricting services to commercial clients such as IT companies, banks, and foreign missions. The current expansion broadens access to individual users.
VPNs are commonly used globally to bypass content restrictions,and in Pakistan,they are utilized to access platforms like X (formerly Twitter),among other blocked websites.The PTA states this measure is intended to “promote regulatory facilitation, user convenience, and enhanced cybersecurity across Pakistan’s digital ecosystem.”
