According to the report, the total content restricted in Pakistan by social media giant Facebook doubled between July and December 2018. Facebook restricted 4,174 items within Pakistan during the second half of 2018. In comparison, 2,203 items were restricted in the first half of 2018.
India was the country with the highest number of restricted items (17,713), followed by Pakistan and Brazil (4,026).
Facebook suspended 3,811 posts, 343 pages and groups, 10 profiles and one album in Pakistan. Facebook said that it restricted the content because it violated local laws prohibiting blasphemy, anti-judiciary content, defamation, and condemnation of the country’s independence.
During the second half of 2018, Facebook said that there was a significant increase in requests made by the Pakistani government to restrict content on the platform. The authorities sent 1,752 data requests and sought data of 2,360 users/accounts. In the first half, the government had sent 1,233 requests to Facebook.
Facebook also accepts requests made by governments to preserve account information if needed. “When we receive a preservation request, we will preserve a temporary snapshot of the relevant account information but will not disclose any of the preserved records unless and until we receive formal and valid legal process,” Facebook said.
The Pakistan government sent 488 preservation requests as opposed to 430 in the first half and specified 709 users/accounts compared to 580 to the platform.