Web Desk: The country's social media speed has decreased due to the experimental operation of the firewall, according to informed sources. This has raised concerns about the future of internet-based businesses in the country.
Internet traffic and speed are expected to return to normal soon. The government has allocated more than 30 billion rupees in the development budget to acquire and install this filtering system. This funding was given to the Ministry of Information Technology, but the project is being managed by another power center, with the Ministry of Information Technology having minimal involvement beyond that of a postal service.
An official stated that work on the firewall has been ongoing since January this year, including the procurement and installation of the system. The system is now installed and being initiated, with the handover of control to the relevant authorities expected to take a few weeks. The system aims to control social media influencers who are allegedly involved in spreading fake news, by hiding or blocking their content.
The PTA has issued a tender for the acquisition of four next-generation firewalls and two web application firewalls. A PTA spokesperson said that this measure is intended to ensure strong, layered security for PTA's internal systems and applications.