Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Wednesday informed the National Assembly Standing Committee on Information Technology and Telecommunication that it cannot immediately remove objectionable content from social media platforms.

The committee was told that social media platforms like Facebook and YouTube are among the most secure platforms, with their data also maintained outside of Pakistan. They said PTA could not do anything unless they (the platforms) deleted the content themselves.

The officials of the PTA further told the committee that the authority could only ask the social media companies to remove immoral or objectionable content but had no direct way of removing the content.

Moreover, the officials informed committee that the authority cannot estimate the revenue YouTube, Facebook, and other platforms earn from Pakistan and can only see the volume of traffic on these platforms.

Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) Romina Khurshid Alam questioned why Pakistan cannot make social media companies comply with certain policies despite being a source of revenue. The officials of the IT Ministry responded that discussions with social media companies are currently underway in this regard.

Source: Pro Pakistan