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ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Tuesday launched a cybercrime helpline, 1799, that aims to ensure swift resolution of complaints, Pakistani state media reported.

The development came during Naqvi’s visit to the headquarters of the National Cyber Crimes Investigation Agency (NCCIA), which was established earlier this year, the APP news agency reported.

The minister toured various departments, including the helpline center, forensic lab and network security section, and appreciated the staff for their efforts to combat cybercrime.

“The helpline is now fully operational, and citizens can lodge cybercrime complaints by calling 1799,” the interior minister was quoted as saying.

Pakistan transformed the Cybercrime Wing of its Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) into an autonomous organization and named it the NCCIA in April. It followed the introduction of a new law to regulate social media content, with journalist groups and rights activists saying it was aimed at curbing press freedom and dissent on social media.

Enacted in 2016 and further tightened with amendments this January, the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) was drafted with the stated aim to combat cybercrimes such as hacking, online harassment, and data breaches. Pakistani officials defended the PECA law, under which offenders can be handed prison sentences of up to three years and fines of Rs2 million ($7,200).

Naqvi directed NCCIA officials to ensure quick resolution of all complaints, saying the agency was established to meet the demands of the modern digital era, according to the report.

He emphasized the need for the use of advanced technology, software and hardware to fight cybercrime effectively and stressed the need to hire talented staff and equiping them with all necessary resources.

The development came as authorities announced busting a child sexual abuse ring, allegedly run by a German national, in Azad Kashmir’s capital of Muzaffarabad.

“A state-of-the-art facility was formed with modern cameras and over there, children from poor families were exploited by giving money first and then blackmailing,” State Minister for Interior Talal Chaudhry said at a presser on Tuesday.

“Their videos were sold on the dark web.”

The NCCIA busted the ring in a five-hour operation on May 23 and arrested two suspects, according to the minister. Ten kids were also found at the facility, of which six were sent to the Child Protection Bureau.

“The German man used to facilitate and sell this [content],” Chaudhry said, without disclosing the identity of the suspect. “We are trying to reach him legally.”

Child sexual abuse has been a widespread issue in Pakistan, where perpetrators are often family members, teachers or trusted people. Poverty, lack of education and societal attitudes contribute to the problem. While laws exist, their implementation remains a challenge. Various NGOs are also working to raise awareness about the issue and support survivors.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani police said on Tuesday it had arrested the main suspect in the murder of 17-year-old TikTok star Sana Yousaf, disclosing that he had killed her after she repeatedly rejected his proposals for “friendship.” 

Yousaf, who had over 830,000 followers and 29 million likes on video sharing platform TikTok, was shot dead at her house in Islamabad’s G-13 area on Monday. Police launched a probe on Monday, saying that unidentified persons shot Yousaf in the chest twice and killed her on the spot. Her body was shifted to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) hospital in Islamabad for post-mortem. 

A CCTV footage, which was first shared on private news channels and then later on state-run Pakistan Television (PTV), showed a young man walking briskly away from Yousaf’s house in broad daylight. Sharing details of the suspect, Islamabad Inspector General of Police Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi said the suspect is a matriculation student and the son of a retired government officer who was arrested from Faisalabad. 

The police official said the suspect did not have any source of income, adding that he used to promote content on Instagram and other social media platforms. 

“Before getting into the motive, I should make it clear that we have arrested [the suspect] and recovered the weapon of offense,” Rizvi told reporters at a news conference. 

He said police also recovered Yousaf’s iPhone from the suspect, which he had taken with him to erase evidence of the crime. 

“Basically, it was a case of repeated rejections,” Rizvi said, adding that the suspect had been trying to contact Yousaf through social media in the past, who had been rejecting his offers of “friendship.” 

He said the suspect had tried to contact Yousaf for eight to nine hours at her Islamabad residence on May 29, the day of her birthday, but could not succeed. Rizvi said the suspect tried to meet Sana again on June 2 at her residence, waiting there for eight to 10 hours but failed again. 

“And then he planned and entered her house because of his weapon and murdered her,” the Islamabad Police official said. 

Rizvi described it as a “blind murder,” saying that it was a challenging case for police to solve as the suspect had taken her mobile phone and left no evidence of the crime. He credited Islamabad Police officials for solving the murder within 20 hours through the use of cellular technology and digital surveillance. 

Pakistani news outlets frequently report cases of violence against women, particularly for turning down marriage proposals or for uploading videos on TikTok and other social media platforms. 

Police in Pakistan’s southwestern province in January arrested a man for being involved in murdering his 14-year-old daughter, an American citizen, for posting “objectionable” videos on TikTok. 

More than 54 million people use TikTok in conservative Pakistan, where authorities have repeatedly blocked the app over concerns regarding its content. It was banned four times in 2021.