X (Twitter) Remains Blocked in Pakistan for Third Consecutive Day

Social media platform X (formerly Twitter) has remained blocked in Pakistan for the third consecutive day after Rawalpindi Commissioner admitted to rigging of election results. Initially, X went down on 17th February 2024 with users unable to access the service without using a Virtual Private Network (VPN); however, the service was briefly restored before getting blocked once again.

According to Downdetector, an online platform offering real-time updates on website statuses, people are constantly having trouble accessing X in Pakistan. Furthermore, as per Downdetector’s outage map, the social media platform is mainly affected in major cities, including Karachi, Quetta, Lahore, Islamabad, and Rawalpindi.

Netblocks also reported X (Twitter) being restricted in Pakistan and their latest update, made over 20 hours ago, stated that the social media platform has remained down for 24 hours. It added that is was “the latest and longest in a series of nation-scale internet censorship measures imposed by authorities as reports of election fraud emerges.”

⚠ Update: Metrics show that X/Twitter has now been restricted in #Pakistan for 24 hours, the latest and longest in a series of nation-scale internet censorship measures imposed by authorities as reports of election fraud emerge 📉 https://t.co/XAsM39sBb5 pic.twitter.com/ZKIhINj3Pc

— NetBlocks (@netblocks) February 18, 2024

Furthermore, the matter is made worse due to blocking of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) and degraded internet speeds across the country. Several VPN applications are not working and having a hard time connecting since Saturday, which makes accessing blocked X (Twitter) a challenge for many internet users.

Read more: Internet Outages Continue in Pakistan.