Fact-check: PTA denies viral notice asking social media groups to remove foreign members
PTA has dismissed the online claims on its official social media accounts
Updated Monday Dec 08 2025
A press release allegedly issued by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) is circulating widely on social media, warning all administrators of WhatsApp, Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram groups to immediately remove all foreign members, or face action under the country’s cybercrime laws.
The claim is false.
Claim
A Facebook user shared a purported press release dated November 28, attributed to the PTA, with the subject: Notification on Social Media Groups’ Security and Data Protection.
The post claims that, due to national security concerns and to protect online users’ data, all social media groups operated from within Pakistan, whether on WhatsApp, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, or any other platform, must conduct a detailed review of their members.
It further instructs group administrators to remove any foreign members immediately, warning that non-compliance would lead to action under Section 21 of the Electronic Crimes Act 2016.
The letter is allegedly signed by Khurram Ali Mehran, the deputy director of public relations at PTA in Islamabad.
Similar claims were also shared on Threads, Instagram and TikTok.
Fact
No such directive has been issued by the PTA.
Zaib un Nisa, the director of communications at PTA, confirmed the online document is entirely false. She shared an official PTA press release debunking the claim.
A fake notification circulating on social media, claiming that PTA has instructed social media group administrators to remove foreign members, is false, the press release reads.
The statement clarified that PTA had issued no such directive and urged the public to avoid sharing unverified information, advising reliance only on PTA’s official channels for authentic updates.
PTA also highlighted that Khurram Ali Mehran no longer holds the position of deputy director at the authority either, further confirming that the press release is not authentic.
The Facebook post can be viewed here.
Verdict: The viral notification claiming that the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority instructed social media group administrators to remove foreign members is false. PTA has issued no such directive.
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