'Sharks can’t bite submarine cables,' Pakistan telecom regulator admits

Pakistan's Senate Standing Committee on Information Technology (IT) convened on Wednesday to discuss the country's ongoing internet disruptions. During the meeting, representatives from the Ministry of IT and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) were questioned about the legality of internet shutdowns.

In a notable moment, the PTA Chairman dismissed long-running claims about sharks damaging submarine cables, addressing public skepticism about official explanations for internet disruptions.

"Unless you're referring to something else entirely, sharks cannot damage submarine cables," the PTA chairman remarked during the meeting, injecting a moment of levity into the serious discussion about Pakistan's internet infrastructure.

The comment referenced a long-running joke among Pakistani netizens, stemming from a years-old incident where authorities blamed shark activity for damaged submarine cables. This explanation became a symbol of what many saw as implausible official justifications for internet disruptions, with citizens dubbing subsequent unexplained outages as the work of "mischievous sharks".

'Shutdowns unlawful?'

He claimed that if this practice were illegal, the government would not have continued requesting such shutdowns over the past nine years, saying, "Since 2016, whenever the Ministry of Interior sends a letter, the internet is blocked. This practice was ongoing even before my tenure. It's the first time today that I'm hearing that the shutdowns may be unlawful. Was the internet shutdown on Election Day, February 8, also wrong?" He suggested that the final legal opinion on the matter could be obtained from the Ministry of Law and the Ministry of Interior.

He further noted that internet services and social media platforms are also frequently restricted in compliance with Supreme Court and high court directives, which have issued multiple orders to block these platforms.

Senator Humayun Mohmand from the opposition party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf questioned whether it was not the ministry's responsibility to inform the Supreme Court that such actions lack legal or regulatory support.

Furthermore, the Special Secretary of the Ministry of IT acknowledged that internet shutdowns in specific areas are implemented as a means to enforce content restrictions.

'80% content removed per day'

During the meeting, the PTA Chairman disclosed that the authority receives approximately 500 complaints about social media content each day. The PTA then requests social media platforms to remove the flagged content, with about 80% of these requests resulting in successful content removal.

Senator Kamran Murtaza of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) questioned the PTA's authority to implement internet shutdowns without legal grounds, noting that existing legislation does not explicitly permit regional internet restrictions.

In response, the Ministry of IT's legal representative acknowledged that current laws do not specifically address regional internet blockades.

On the other hand, the PTA Chairman argued that according to existing regulations, the Ministry of Interior has the authority to direct the PTA to implement internet shutdowns.

VPN restrictions, new submarine cables

Addressing VPN restrictions, the PTA Chairman clarified that the authority has not authorized any VPN service blockages. He noted that the registration process for VPN service providers commenced on December 19, with two internet service providers already submitting license applications. He expressed optimism about receiving additional applications in the future.

The PTA Chairman also reported that Pakistan is currently connected to seven submarine cables, including one that links the country to Africa, with connectivity expected to be established within the year.

He announced that four additional submarine cables would be installed in the coming years. Addressing concerns about cable integrity, he assured the committee that sharks pose no threat to submarine cables and noted that Pakistan currently ranks 97th globally in internet speed.

The committee concluded the meeting by requesting representatives from the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Law to attend the next session.

Pakistan's internet struggles

Pakistan's internet in 2024 experienced frequent disruptions, with authorities reporting multiple submarine cable incidents throughout the year. Officials cited five cable cuts near Indonesia in April, additional SMW4 cable faults during Eid in June, and damage to both the AAE-1 and SMW-4 cables in August.

However, public trust in these explanations waned as government officials offered varying and sometimes contradictory reasons for service degradation, ranging from cable damage to technical issues to excessive VPN usage.