The federal government is advancing plans to set up a dedicated Cybersecurity Authority, marking a major step toward strengthening Pakistan’s national cyber defense. An initial draft of the National Cyber Security Act has been completed and shared with relevant stakeholders for review.
In a written response submitted to the National Assembly, the Federal Minister for IT and Telecom confirmed that the new authority will serve as the central coordinating body for enforcing cybersecurity standards across all Critical Information Infrastructure (CII) sectors and operators. The goal is to create a unified structure capable of protecting national digital systems from growing cyber threats.
The minister noted that the authority forms a key component of the National Cyber Security Policy (NCSP-2021), which outlines a nationwide framework aimed at protecting digital assets, enhancing cyber resilience, and securing citizens’ data. The policy is being executed under the Digital Economy Enhancement Program (DEEP), which includes critical initiatives such as Digital Identity, e-Citizen enablement, and the Secure Data Exchange Layer—designed to enable trusted and secure digital governance.
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The government has already designated the information systems and data of NADRA, FBR, and the telecom sector as Critical Information Infrastructure under PECA-2016. National guidelines for identifying and securing CIIs have been issued, and the process to classify the systems of Immigration & Passports as CII is currently underway.
Until the new Cybersecurity Authority becomes operational, a CERT Council established under the CERT Rules 2023 is managing national cyber incident response. The council includes 14 members from the IT & Telecom Ministry, Defence, Interior, Foreign Affairs, academia, civil society, telecom operators, and governmental CERTs. It is tasked with strengthening coordination between public and private sectors and improving response capabilities against cyber threats.
The establishment of the Cybersecurity Authority is expected to significantly enhance Pakistan’s ability to combat cyberattacks, secure national databases, and protect critical governance systems in an increasingly digital age.
