Pakistan’s Internet Slowdown Likely to Last Until Early October Due to Submarine Cable Fault
The internet slowdown across Pakistan is expected to persist, with repairs to the damaged SMW-4 submarine cable anticipated to be completed by early October 2024, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) announced on Wednesday.
The PTA confirmed that the slowdown is primarily caused by faults in two of the seven international submarine cables (SMW-4 and AAE-1) connecting Pakistan to the global internet. While the AAE-1 cable has been repaired, improving internet performance, the SMW-4 cable repairs are ongoing and are expected to conclude by October.
Internet services have been severely disrupted since July, with speeds reduced by up to 40%, and platforms like WhatsApp have been affected, impacting millions of users. PTA dismissed rumors of firewall installations, attributing the issues solely to the submarine cable damage. The authority clarified that VPNs are not being blocked but are being registered, and emphasized compliance with government directives for content restrictions under Pakistan’s web management system.
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