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This surge comes asPakistan restricted access to WhatsAppover the weekend, ahead of planned anti-government protests.

Only two days before, authoritiesblocked Blueskyas it gained more traction worldwide.

Silhouette of muslim woman in head scarf with Pakistan flag at blue sunset sky

Data from Proton VPN shows a huge spike in VPN usage as other providers began experiencing issues at the beginning of November.

The recent VPN throttling didn’t affect all providers, though.

Experts cannot yet determine the real impact that Pakistan’s new VPN rules will have on users.

Migliano then expects authorities to mainly target bigger brands.

The graph shows spike in VPN downloads in Pakistan starting from November 9, 2024.

Data from Proton VPN shows a huge spike in VPN usage as other providers began experiencing issues at the beginning of November.

“Rotating through multiple VPNs will likely be the most effective strategy going forward,” noted Migliano.

Bear in mind that the legality of using a VPN to bypass restrictions in Pakistan isn’t yet clear.