Minister of State for Information Technology Shaza Fatima has said that the government is trying to bring the world’s billionaire Elon Musk’s satellite company Starlink to Pakistan.
The minister stated this during a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on IT and Telecom chaired by Palwasha Khan.
Chairman Palwasha Khan said that whatever initiative the Ministry of IT takes, it puts the responsibility on the Ministry of Interior. I don’t understand why we have the Ministry of IT, she added while lashing out at the ministry.
The IT officials said they are trying to minimize the impact on the industry while meeting national security requirements.
Pakistan Software House Association (PASHA) Chairman Sajjad Syed said that the industry is progressing at the rate of 30 per cent and added that in case of threat to national security, internet service may be stopped. All the countries monitor the VPN, he recalled.
Sajjad said that Pasha has recommended VPN service providers as well as the government to register VPNs locally because of the data security risks posed by free VPNs.
He said that the Internet is the main artery for the IT industry. In the current situation, 99 per cent of the IT companies have identified the disruption. A cell was formed to address the concerns of the industry.
