“We reject the black law (PECA).” Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists held a protest in February 2025 against the controversial PECA Amendment Bill 2025. Image by the author. Used with permission.

“I believe every journalist and citizen needs to be acquainted with the law. As a court reporter, I know the scope and limitations of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), and I am aware of my responsibilities as a journalist and as a citizen. I only post content that I can legally defend in a court of law,” says Waheed Murad, a Pakistani journalist working for Urdu News, an online news outlet owned by the Saudi Research and Media Group (SRMG).

On March 28, 2025, Murad was picked up by unknown men and later released, only to face charges under the controversial cybercrime law (PECA). The case against him is currently pending in court.

Journalists in Pakistan have faced a sharp increase in threats, abductions, and arrests in the past three months. These incidents indicate an increasingly hostile environment for media professionals, where intimidation and violence are systematically employed to stifle independent journalism.

Speaking to Global Voices via WhatsApp, Waheed Murad declined to comment on the specifics of the ongoing legal proceedings but expressed confidence in his legal position. “The case is before the court, and I do not wish to make any statements that might prejudice the outcome. My lawyers will contest the charges and establish whether I have broken any laws. Until then, I will continue to exercise my rights responsibly, within the bounds of the Constitution and the law,” he said.

The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), enacted in 2016, was originally introduced to address cybercrime. However, in recent years, journalists, digital rights advocates, and opposition parties have repeatedly raised concerns about its growing use as a tool to suppress dissent and curtail freedom of expression. Murad told Global Voices.:

Human rights organizations, journalist unions such as the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), and political parties have consistently protested against PECA. The law has been challenged in court, and the matter is currently under judicial review. The key question is whether PECA can exist within Pakistan’s constitutional framework, particularly in relation to the fundamental right to freedom of expression.

For Murad, the experience has not shaken his confidence or changed his principles. “I don’t feel unsafe, because I haven’t done anything unlawful. Only those who break the law should feel threatened. As a journalist, I am exercising my legal rights. The Constitution grants me protection, and that cannot be overridden by PECA unless I’ve actually broken a law.”

Stricter penalties in the 2025 amendment

Pakistan is further tightening its noose against fake news and disinformation in online spaces by introducing amendments to the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) 2016. In December 2024, the Senate unanimously passed the National Forensic Agency Bill, 2024, which aimed at creating an independent agency tasked with investigating electronic devices, deepfakes, and other cyber offenses.

The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), also known as the cybercrime law, was initially enacted in 2016 following the 2014 terrorist attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar, which left 144 students and staff dead. In response, then-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s government introduced a 20-point National Action Plan to combat terrorism, which sought to regulate online speech. These rules were later revised and made stricter. The use of law against activists, journalists, and political workers in online spaces has grown over the years.

In 2020, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government introduced the “Removal and Blocking of Unlawful Online Content (Procedure, Oversight and Safeguards) Rules, 2020” under PECA 2016 to tighten controls over social media. Nonetheless, activist groups and civil society denounced the step, calling the rules draconian.

In 2021, an inter-ministerial committee was formed to revise the rules after the Islamabad High Court introduced the Prevention of Electronic Crimes (Amendment) Ordinance, 2022, to prevent “fake news” and increase the jail term under section 20 for defaming any person or institution from three years to five years. But it was struck down by the Islamabad High Court (IHC), which termed it unconstitutional.

In May 2024, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved a draft amendment to PECA 2016 proposing the creation of a Digital Rights Protection Authority under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Information Technology.

The PECA Amendment Act 2025 establishes the Social Media Protection and Regulatory Authority (SMPRA) to oversee social media platforms, regulate content, and ensure compliance with national laws. It also introduces stricter penalties for spreading false information, with offenders facing up to three years in prison and a fine of up to two million rupees (USD 7,088).

Weaponizing the Law

In November 2024 alone, authorities issued arrest warrants for 150 journalists under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), accusing them of spreading misinformation about state institutions. The charges stemmed from their coverage of the November 26 crackdown on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf supporters in Islamabad.

Following recent amendments to PECA, authorities have intensified their crackdown on political workers, journalists, and social media users, with cases being registered across the country.

According to data provided by a Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) official to Global Voices via a USB drive, 83 PTI members have so far been booked under PECA. Cases have also been filed against journalists Farhan Mallick in Karachi, Sohrab Barkat, and Ahmad Noorani. Human rights activist Jalila Haider is also facing similar charges under the law.

Journalist Farhan Mallick has been charged under various sections of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) and the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), including allegations of disseminating anti-state content and defamation. Journalist Sohrab Barak was also booked and accused of spreading misinformation and publishing intimidating content on social media.

Investigative journalist Ahmad Noorani, who is currently living in exile and reports on sensitive issues including blasphemy, was similarly charged under multiple sections of PECA. The main allegation against him involves allegedly spreading false information about the Jaffer Express train attack in Balochistan. Section 26-A of PECA appears as a common charge in all three cases.

YouTuber and vlogger Rajab Butt has also been charged under PECA as well as Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, following a citizen’s complaint filed in Lahore. Additional cases have been registered in Rawalpindi and Sargodha in Punjab and in various districts across Balochistan.

According to the Pakistan Press Foundation, these First Information Reports (FIRs) are part of a broader crackdown on journalists accused of disseminating information deemed false or contrary to the state’s official narrative.

According to the most recent data shared with Global Voices by a FIA official, the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) registered 8,357 inquiries in 2025 alone. As of June 2025, a total of 670 cases have been filed under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) across Pakistan. A 2021 report by the Institute of Research, Advocacy and Development highlighted that in the first five years of the PECA, Pakistan had dealt with 16,905 inquiries, and only 496 inquiries (around three percent) were converted into cases for further investigation.

Sadaf Khan, co-founder of Media Matters for Democracy — an organization working on media literacy and development — criticized the amendment’s vague definitions and sweeping enforcement powers in a conversation with Global Voices via WhatsApp. She warned of its serious implications for journalists, activists, and ordinary citizens.

“The problem with fake news legislation is that it can never define fake news in a way that excludes opinions, analysis, or political commentary. The entire political information ecosystem is full of contradictions, predictions, and debates,” Khan said.

With a law like PECA in the hands of the government, there is a high likelihood it will be used against voices that do not align with their own. This legislation gives authorities the power to silence dissent,” she added.

Similarly, Farieha Aziz, co-founder of Bolo Bhi, an organisation focused on digital rights advocacy, policy, and research, described PECA as a tool of repression rather than protection.

“PECA was always intended as a tool of censorship and is being used exactly for that purpose. Protection was just an excuse to gain acceptance for the law,” Aziz told Global Voices.

She rejected the government’s narrative around fake news, arguing that misinformation control is being used as a pretext for censorship.

‘Fake news’ is a Trumpian term used to discredit dissidents. Misinformation and disinformation must be tackled differently, not through excessive criminalization. Fake news and defamation laws are a ruse to silence independent voices.

Farieha Aziz noted that cases against journalists have surged since the PECA amendment and called for a multi-pronged approach to address misinformation, rather than relying on legal crackdowns.

“Better media literacy and awareness of misinformation and disinformation, along with tools to counter false narratives, should be the first line of defence,” she said.