Pakistan warns TikTok over complaints of ‘immoral, obscene and vulgar content’

The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has issued a final warning to the video-sharing social networking app TikTok on Monday and blocked live-streaming app Bigo on complaints of “immoral, obscene and vulgar content” and “extremely negative effects”.

The telecommunication authority, in its press release issued on late Monday, said it had received a “number of complaints … from different segments of the society against immoral, obscene and vulgar content on social media applications particularly Tik Tok and Bigo”.

The complaints, PTA added, also included the apps’ “extremely negative effects on the society in general and youth in particular”.

The “PTA had issued necessary notices to the aforementioned social media companies under law to moderate the socialization and content within legal and moral limits, in accordance with the laws of the country,” the statement added, noting that responses from the social media giants “has not been satisfactory”.

PTA while mentioning its powers under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), 2016, said it had immediately blocked Bigo and was issuing a “final warning to Tik Tok to put in place a comprehensive mechanism to control obscenity, vulgarity and immorality through its social media application”.