Allama Dr Raghib Naeemi, chairman of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII), said on Monday that among various “un-Islamic” uses of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) was making statements “against national security” and character assassination of a person.

In a proclamation on Friday, the CII — which advises parliament on aligning legislation with Islamic teachings — said using VPNs for “immoral or illegal activities”, as well as to access “illegal content or blocked websites” was against Sharia.

In the statement, the CII chairman had contended that Islamic laws allowed the government to prevent actions that lead to the “spread of evil”.

Speaking to Geo News’ programme ‘Geo Pakistan’ today, Dr Naeemi said: “Whether it is a registered VPN or unregistered, if attempts are made to access indecent or immoral sites, character assassination is done, statements are being made against national security, or if various incidents of religious blasphemy are being spread through it, then [using] it would completely be un-Islamic.

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“However, if it is being used for education, communication, or conveying positive messages, then no harm is being considered in that,” he clarified.

“If you register the VPN, and do positive activity or even positive criticism, then there is no harm in it,” Dr Naeemi further said.

The cleric explained: “The [VPN] hides location [and] who is working from where. So, basically, when we talk about these technological matters, in reality, its action decides if it is Islamic or un-Islamic.”

The CII chief elaborated that the case of VPNs was “exactly like using a loudspeaker”, noting that using the device in violation of the Punjab Sound Systems (Regulation) Act 2015 would constitute a case and punishment. “So its use will be seen,” he added.

The declared purpose of the 2015 law was to prevent public nuisance and the voicing of utterances of a controversial nature likely to cause public disorder.

Dr Naeemi quoted an expert from the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority as telling him that “15 million un-Islamic and immoral sites were being accessed daily using VPNs”.

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Explaining the reasoning behind the proclamation on VPNs, the CII chief said that in an Arabic proverb, a matter was considered “in totality” if the occurrence was “often”.

The use of VPNs has surged in Pakistan as people are using them to access X, which has been banned since February, as well as a host of other websites.

Authorities claim the software is also being used to bypass restrictions on pornographic content, as well as to facilitate terrorists in violent activities.