Pakistan is one of the many countries that has seen a surge incyberbullying cases due to a shortage of resources and required manpower tohandle each case. A few procedural changes due to COVID-19 such as thestay-at-home policy have made it difficult for complainants to visitconcerned offices.——————————

According to a report from the Digital Rights Foundation (DRF), as comparedto January and February, March and April saw an increase of 189 percent incomplaints registered with DRF’s Cyber Harassment Helpline. In terms ofnumbers, 136 complaints were received during March and April, compared to47 in January and February 2020.

When the country entered its first lockdown in response to the pandemicoutbreak, the DRF surmised the possibility of an increase incyber-harassment cases.

In a succinct breakdown of the report, the complaints were registered underthe following categories:

– Defamation: 4% – Hate speech: 1% – Fake profiles: 4% – Blackmailing: 18% – Unsolicited contact: 17% – Non-consensual: 18% – Threat: 13% – Phishing: 7%

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The majority of these complaints came from Lahore and other areas of Punjabby those aged between 20-25 years.

Pakistan needs better technical expertise in digital forensics andinvestigation, and a case management system to be introduced in therelevant wings to bring the number of cases down. Setting examples would bethe key if Pakistani authorities intend to control the evil.