Decision on restoring access to Facebook, YouTube, TikTok tomorrow: Palak
We had asked Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube to provide both oral and written explanations and they are supposed to present their explanations at the BTRC from 9am to 11am by tomorrow, he says
A decision on restoring people's access to social media platforms Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok will be made after 11am tomorrow (31 July), State Minister for Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology Zunaid Ahmed Palak said today (30 July).
When reporters asked him when access to social media platforms would be restored, Palak said, "We had asked Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube to provide both oral and written explanations [for not complying with the country's laws and regulations] and they are supposed to present their explanations at the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission [BTRC] from 9am to 11am by tomorrow.
"So far, only TikTok has confirmed that they will present their explanations. Facebook and YouTube have yet to respond."
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He was briefing journalists after a meeting with other ministers, state ministers and senior officials of law enforcement agencies at the Secretariat in the evening.
"If they do reply, we will analyse their explanations and make a decision. However, if they do not respond, we will hold a meeting at 11am to decide on the matter," he added.
According to media reports, the BTRC asked the international internet gateway (IIG) operators to block Facebook.
Last week, Palak said social media platforms, especially Facebook and YouTube, have not been complying with Bangladesh's laws.
"They are also not taking into account the situation on the ground, violating their policy guidelines… Amid this, who will take the risk [of opening the social media platforms]?" he added.
Govt not regulating internet speed; VPN use creating cyber risks
Earlier in the day, Palak said the government was not regulating internet speeds and that everything was open at the BTRC end.
Speaking at a press conference after an emergency meeting related to cyber security at the ICT Tower in the capital's Agargaon, Palak said the 5,000% increase in the use of virtual private networks (VPNs) was not only creating cyber risks but also increasing international bandwidth traffic.
He also said more than 50,000 cyberattacks took place on the websites of eight government institutions in the 10 days since quota reform violences broke out. However, the hackers did not get access to any information other than the domain name system (DNS).
