Pakistan has banned Chinese social media app TikTok based on failing to filter out “immoral and indecent” content, the country’s telecommunications authority said.
The decision came after several complaints were submitted from different segments of society, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) said in a statement on Friday.
A while ago an official warning was given to TikTok by PTA (Pakistan Telecommunication Authority) for allowing vulgar and indecent content on its platform. However, TikTok failed to fully comply with the instructions and regulations requested by the PTA. Therefore, directions were issued for blocking of TikTok application in the country.
The PTA said TikTok has been informed that the regulator is open to engagement and can review its decision subject to a satisfactory mechanism by TikTok to moderate unlawful content. TikTok has been caught in a firestorm globally due to security and privacy concerns. It has already been blocked in India and it faces scrutiny in countries from Australia to the United States.
The decision to ban TikTok was taken when Prime Minister Imran Khan took a keen interest in the issue. On one occasion Prime Minister Imran Khan also mentioned that apps which are involved in spreading vulgarity and are damaging the values of the society should be banned. This recent ban is also taken in this regard and it is highly possible that a lot of other social media apps will also be under radar.
