Pakistan suffered a major internet outage on Friday (April 27) due to damage to maritime cables. According to local media reports, the disruption is believed to have been caused by fiber optic cables connecting Singapore, Pakistan and Europe being found broken in multiple locations.
A vital fiber optic cable connecting Singapore to Pakistan and Europe was damaged near Indonesia, affecting internet services across Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
Additionally, the report revealed that five undersea cable breaks significantly affected internet connectivity, especially from the eastern route. It is estimated that restoration efforts will take approximately one month to fully repair the damaged portion of the fiber optic cable. However, Pakistan Telecommunications Corporation and Transworld are both grappling with issues regarding eastbound traffic.
Consumers in Pakistan have difficulty accessing the internet as less than 10% of internet traffic is routed from the east. To mitigate the damage, PTCL rerouted internet traffic from the east to alternative channels. Customers may continue to experience issues until the fiber optic network is fully restored.