Pakistan’s digital spaces are becoming increasingly unsafe and the state can no longer afford to treat cybercrime as a secondary issue. The figures presented before the Senate Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting paint a troubling picture: with nearly 140 million Pakistanis active online and officials estimating that around 20 per cent of social media accounts are fake, the scale of fraud, harassment, blackmail and disinformation has grown into a serious societal challenge. The sheer volume of complaints received by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) -- some 154,000 in a year -- reflects both the expansion of digital abuse and the desperation of victims seeking redress. The problem is real and demands urgent attention. Women continue to face coordinated harassment campaigns, blackmail and non-consensual image sharing. Journalists, activists and public figures are frequently targeted through orchestrated trolling and smear campaigns designed to intimidate and silence them. Children are also increasingly vulnerable to online exploitation, grooming and AI-generated abuse. The rapid evolution of technology, especially artificial intelligence, has made these crimes more sophisticated, anonymous and difficult to trace. In this context, strengthening cybercrime investigation capacity and improving coordination between provincial police and federal authorities is necessary.
Yet the state must recognise a critical distinction: combating cybercrime cannot become a pretext for expanding censorship or suppressing dissent. Pakistan’s experience with the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) offers ample reason for caution. Laws introduced in the name of ‘digital safety’ have too often been criticised for being selectively applied against journalists, critics, political opponents and those who have fallen out of favour with powerful quarters. Even during the Senate briefing, it emerged that FIRs had been registered against journalists, only to be later cancelled after initial investigations. Such cases reinforce fears that cybercrime legislation can easily drift from protecting citizens to policing speech. There has to be another way besides routinely expanding the state’s powers of surveillance and control. And legal enforcement alone will never solve the crisis. Pakistan’s online abuse problem reflects deeper societal attitudes that exist offline as well. The misogyny, intolerance and culture of public shaming seen on social media are extensions of the prejudices embedded within society itself. AI may have accelerated these problems, but it did not create them.
What is required, therefore, is a broader societal response. Digital literacy must become a national priority, particularly for younger users. Schools, universities and media institutions need to teach online safety, responsible digital behaviour and critical thinking. Victims of cyber harassment should have access not only to legal mechanisms but also to psychological and social support systems. Technology companies must improve moderation systems in local languages and respond more effectively to harmful content originating in Pakistan. The state has a legitimate responsibility to protect citizens from cybercrime. But protection cannot come at the expense of constitutional freedoms. Pakistan does need stronger mechanisms to combat online fraud, harassment and exploitation. What it does not need is the continued whitewashing of problematic laws under the guise of digital security. The challenge is to create fairer systems -- ones that protect citizens without criminalising dissent.
