A Senate subcommittee meeting chaired by Sarmad Ali reviewed the implementation and case distribution under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, where officials provided a detailed briefing on cybercrime related cases registered across Pakistan. The session, reported by Muhammad Bilal and published on May 7, 2026 at 10:35 am, focused on enforcement trends, jurisdictional authority, and case handling mechanisms involving citizens, journalists, and social media activists. Officials presented nationwide data showing that a total of 689 PECA related cases have been filed, reflecting a broad geographic spread across multiple cities and administrative regions.
According to the data shared during the briefing, Lahore and Multan each recorded 129 cases, making them among the highest reporting regions for PECA related matters, followed closely by Faisalabad with 127 cases. Rawalpindi registered 72 cases, while additional cases were reported from Peshawar, Abbottabad, and Gujranwala. Smaller figures were recorded in Islamabad with 10 cases, Quetta with 14 cases, and Gilgit with a single case. Officials also informed the committee that enforcement activity has been distributed unevenly across regions, reflecting differences in reporting patterns, enforcement focus, and local digital activity trends under the cybercrime framework.
The committee was further briefed on cases specifically involving journalists, media personnel, and social media activists, with officials from the National Counter Cyber Crime Authority stating that a total of 41 cases have been registered against individuals in these categories. Out of these, nine cases were reported in Islamabad involving journalists, while Rawalpindi accounted for two cases and Karachi recorded one case. These figures were presented in response to growing parliamentary interest in understanding how electronic crime laws are being applied across media related professions and digital communication platforms.
During the meeting, Senator Waqar Mehdi raised concerns regarding the institutional authority responsible for registering FIRs and conducting investigations under PECA. Officials clarified that under the revised enforcement framework, provincial authorities no longer hold the authority to register FIRs under the act. Instead, investigative and enforcement powers have been transferred from the Federal Investigation Agency to the National Counter Cyber Crime Authority. Punjab Police representatives informed the committee that they had been directed not to register PECA cases, while Sindh Police officials stated that 55 cybercrime related cases had been registered over the past two years, of which 25 had already been transferred to NCCIA. The committee was also informed that both Punjab and Sindh are working on establishing dedicated cybersecurity departments aimed at strengthening institutional capacity to handle digital crime and cyber related investigations in a more structured manner.
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