Amnesty Alleges Pakistan Using Firewall, Phone Tapping to Spy on Citizens

Pakistan has built one of the most far-reaching surveillance systems outside China, according to a new report from Amnesty International. The watchdog says the state is monitoring millions of citizens through a mix of mass phone tapping and a Chinese-built internet firewall designed to censor social media and restrict online platforms.

A Two-System Surveillance Network

At the center of Pakistan’s surveillance apparatus are two systems: the Lawful Intercept Management System (LIMS) and the Web Monitoring System 2.0 (WMS 2.0). Together, they allow the authorities to tap into at least 4 million mobile phones, intercept calls and text messages, and throttle or block 2 million active internet sessions simultaneously.

LIMS, mandated by the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority, is installed across private telecom networks, giving the Armed Forces and the Inter-Services Intelligence access to consumer data, including phone records and browsing activity. WMS 2.0 goes further by blocking VPNs and websites deemed “unlawful,” with virtually no transparency.

“Pakistan’s Web Monitoring System and Lawful Intercept Management System operate like watchtowers, constantly snooping on the lives of ordinary citizens. In Pakistan, your texts, emails, calls, and internet access are all under scrutiny. But people have no idea of this constant surveillance and its incredible reach. This dystopian reality is extremely dangerous because it operates in the shadow, severely restricting freedom of expression and access to information,” said Agnès Callamard, Secretary General at Amnesty International.

“LIMS and WMS 2.0 are funded by public money, enabled by foreign tech, and used to silence dissent, causing severe human rights harms against the Pakistani people,” said Jurre van Bergen, technologist at Amnesty International.

Chinese and Western Tech Behind the Firewall

Amnesty International’s research shows Pakistan’s surveillance systems are built on a mix of Chinese and Western technologies. The first version of the Web Monitoring System, known as WMS 1.0, was deployed in 2018 using technology from Canadian company Sandvine, now operating as AppLogic Networks.

Trade data reviewed by Amnesty traces Sandvine equipment shipments as early as 2017 to at least three Pakistani contractors, Inbox Technologies, SN Skies Pvt Ltd, and A Hamson Inc., all of which have previously worked on government projects.

According to a leaked dataset, referred to as the “Geedge dataset,” WMS 1.0 was replaced in 2023 with more advanced technology from China’s Geedge Networks. Amnesty describes this version, WMS 2.0, as a commercialized form of China’s “Great Firewall,” designed to provide large-scale censorship and filtering capabilities. The rollout of WMS 2.0 was further supported by hardware and software supplied by two other companies: Niagara Networks in the United States and Thales in France.

For phone surveillance, the Lawful Intercept Management System (LIMS) relies on German firm Utimaco and Emirati company Datafusion. Utimaco’s interception systems allow telecom subscriber data to be collected, while Datafusion’s Monitoring Center Next Generation processes and centralizes the information, making it accessible to Pakistan’s intelligence agencies.

Amnesty International, using commercial trade databases, traced much of Pakistan’s LIMS infrastructure back to two companies: Germany’s Utimaco and the UAE-based Datafusion. Utimaco provides the interception systems that pull data directly from telecom operators, while Datafusion’s Monitoring Center Next Generation (MCNG) organizes and delivers that information to state agencies.

The system enables targeted surveillance, allowing authorities to track phone locations, monitor calls, and read text messages once a number is entered into the network at the request of security officials.

Amnesty linked Geedge Networks to Chinese state-owned enterprises, though the company did not respond to requests for comment. The rights group argues that Pakistan’s reliance on this international supply chain has effectively enabled one of the world’s most far-reaching state surveillance frameworks outside China.

Global Firms Implicated, Few Responses

Of the 20 companies Amnesty contacted, only Niagara Networks and AppLogic Networks responded to detailed questions. Utimaco and Datafusion provided limited replies to earlier inquiries but did not address follow-up letters that outlined the report’s findings.

Amnesty also reached out to nine government entities. Germany’s Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control and Canada’s Trade Controls Bureau acknowledged receipt of letters but declined to answer questions. Pakistan’s government offered no response.

Political Context and Human Rights Fallout

The surveillance expansion comes amid shrinking freedoms. Since the military’s fallout with former Prime Minister Imran Khan in 2022, thousands of opposition members have been jailed, and critics say surveillance systems are being weaponized to suppress dissent. In 2024, Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, filed a case before the Islamabad High Court after private phone recordings were leaked online. While ministries denied running tapping systems, Pakistan’s telecom regulator admitted it had instructed operators to install LIMS for “designated agencies.”

Currently, around 650,000 web links are blocked nationwide, with Balochistan facing prolonged blackouts. Human rights groups accuse security forces of using connectivity shutdowns to cover up enforced disappearances and targeted killings, allegations the military denies.

“A Rare Firewall Outside China”

Experts say Pakistan’s scale of internet filtering is unusual. “It is unusual to see this scale of internet control outside China,” said Ben Wagner, professor of human rights and technology at IT: U in Austria.

Amnesty warns that such surveillance creates a “chilling effect” on society, deterring citizens from exercising their rights online and offline. With foreign suppliers and little oversight, Pakistan’s digital landscape is being reshaped into one of control rather than empowerment.