Pakistan amends cybercrime law to create new agency policing 'fake' online content
Pakistan's parliament amended the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act to create a new Social Media Protection and Regulatory Authority with power to block online content and a Social Media Protection Tribunal, and made spreading information deemed 'fake or false' punishable by up to three years in prison, prompting nationwide journalist protests.1234
- Country
- Pakistan (RSF 2026 rank: 153rd of 180)
- Where
- PK
- Level of government
- National
- Tactics
- Official labels, Licensing and closure of outlets
- Stage
- Punish (see the ladder)
- Head of government at the time
- Shehbaz Sharif
- Issue of the day
- The government said the amendment was needed to curb online disinformation, but journalists said the new offense's vague wording, covering content merely believed likely to cause "fear, panic, disorder or unrest," gave authorities broad discretion over ordinary reporting.
- Outcome
- Sustained. The amendment remained law despite nationwide journalist protests and a Human Rights Watch call for its repeal.
- Era
- The 2020s
What happened
On January 29, 2025, Pakistan's parliament passed amendments to the 2016 Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act creating a government-appointed Social Media Protection and Regulatory Authority, empowered to order the removal or blocking of online content, and a separate Social Media Protection Tribunal to hear related cases. A new provision, Section 26A, made it a crime punishable by up to three years in prison or a fine of about $7,000 to knowingly disseminate information believed to be false or fake and likely to cause "fear, panic, disorder or unrest." The Pakistan Press Foundation said the lack of clarity around the amendments raised questions about the government's real intent, and Human Rights Watch called for the law's repeal, saying it lacked any exemption protecting journalistic work. The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists organized nationwide protests, calling the law an infringement on people's rights.1234
What reason was given
The law's Section 26A targets the "intentional dissemination, exhibition or transmission of information...that the sender knows or believes to be false or fake and likely to cause or create a sense of public fear, panic, disorder or unrest."2
What changed for reporting
Journalists faced a vaguely worded criminal offense, enforced by a government-appointed authority and tribunal rather than the courts, for publishing information officials could later deem false, with no exemption for journalistic work.14
Timeline
2025
Who acted
| Name | Role in this incident | Office at the time |
|---|---|---|
| Parliament of Pakistan | legislated | National legislature |
| Shehbaz Sharif | ordered | Prime Minister of Pakistan |
Sources
- Pakistan: Repeal Amendment to Draconian Cyber Law
- Pakistan: Amended cybercrime law poses new threats to press freedom
Claims cited
- The new provision made disseminating information believed to be false and likely to cause unrest punishable by up to three years in prison.
intentional dissemination, exhibition or transmission of information through any information system, that the sender knows or believes to be false or fake and likely to cause or create a sense of public fear, panic, disorder or unrest.
Pakistan: Amended cybercrime law poses new threats to press freedom, International Press Institute, 2025-02-05. Claim 451, checked 2026-09-22. - The Pakistan Press Foundation said the amendments' lack of clarity raised questions about the government's real purpose.
The lack of clarity and consensus raises questions about the intent of introducing the amendments.
Pakistan: Amended cybercrime law poses new threats to press freedom, International Press Institute, 2025-02-05. Claim 452, checked 2026-09-22. - Human Rights Watch called on the government to uphold free expression and remove the law's abusive provisions.
The government should uphold the right to free expression and overhaul the new law by removing its abusive provisions.
Pakistan: Repeal Amendment to Draconian Cyber Law, Human Rights Watch, 2025-02-03. Claim 453, checked 2026-09-22. - Press-freedom monitors said the absence of an exemption for journalistic work left reporters exposed under the new offense.
The lack of exemptions for journalistic work gravely threatens critical reporting and open debate online on matters of public interest.
Pakistan: Amended cybercrime law poses new threats to press freedom, International Press Institute, 2025-02-05. Claim 454, checked 2026-09-22.