ISLAMABAD: Experts have identified gaps in the national cyber security efforts and pointed out that insufficient cybersecurity expertise, lack of public awareness about online safety as well as inadequate training for both citizens and professionals were the root causes for these gaps.

Speaking at a roundtable organised by Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI) on ‘Cyber Security of Pakistan’, they said in an age of cyber-connectivity, cybersecurity has emerged as the most important component of national digital sovereignty.

The speakers said the recent government efforts towards establishment of a comprehensive cybersecurity regime at national level included a new policy and Cybersecurity Act and a proposed Cybersecurity Authority.

There was a consensus that the state should have rules and regulations that are enforceable. “If you’re going to ban something, you should be able to enforce it. So, I don’t think PTA has the capability or any telecommunication authority in the world has the capability to block the internet as a whole.”

Brig Mukarram, DG Cyber-Intelligence PTA, said internet governance was a key ingredient to the cyber security at the national level because if one sees cyber threat space has enlarged it is because of social media and AI.

“So, if there is no VPN we can turn Pakistan into the Stone Age. What is desired is actual regulation, which is already in the case of mainstream channels, cameras and in the case of social media. There is social media authority. That is coming. So, your burden would be taken off,” he observed.

Acting President of the IPRI Brig Dr Rasshid Wali Janjua said the new cyber-security architecture would address cyber governance, education and awareness to create the desired cyber resilience at the national level.

Siddique Humayun, Director Advocacy IPRI, remarked that the ongoing discussion in cybersecurity on governance and forensics suggests that institutional capacity and technical standards remain uneven.

“The central challenge for Pakistan lies in ensuring that the architecture, skills, enforcement and forensic credibility, matches the ambition and strength of the legislation itself. The governance gap lies in this divergence between our de jure legal postures and our de facto operational realities,” he added.

The participants included cyber security experts, government officials from relevant ministries, private sector and regulatory bodies.

They stated that cyber security was a shared responsibility and all stakeholders have to play a role in making it reliable, secure and invincible. The speakers also stressed the need for investment in capacity building and technology development.

They added that implementation and control were essential for ensuring cyber security and Pakistan has to study models of other countries such as Singapore, the US and China, and overcome gaps in an indigenous manner by building its own safeguards, and regulations.

Published in Dawn, January 7th, 2026