Kulgam, Dec 30: In view of serious public safety and cyber security concerns, the District Magistrate Kulgam has ordered the immediate suspension of all Virtual Private Network (VPN) services in the district for a period of two months, officials said on Monday.
In an order issued by District Magistrate Kulgam Athar Aamir Khan, IAS, the decision follows inputs received from the Senior Superintendent of Police, Kulgam, highlighting an unprecedented surge in the use of VPNs by suspicious internet users across various parts of the district.
The order said that excessive and abnormal use of VPN services carries the potential for misuse in unlawful and anti-national activities, including incitement of unrest, circulation of inflammatory or misleading content and coordination of activities prejudicial to public order and security.
The District Magistrate noted that VPNs enable users to conceal IP addresses, bypass restrictions and transmit encrypted data, posing serious risks to cyber security and exposing sensitive information to possible cyber exploitation.
Invoking powers under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, the District Magistrate ordered suspension of all kinds of VPN services on mobile phones within District Kulgam with immediate effect. The order will remain in force for two months from the date of issuance unless withdrawn earlier.
The order, passed ex-parte due to the impracticality of serving individual notices, will be widely publicised through the district website, newspapers and notice boards of all concerned offices. The Senior Superintendent of Police, Kulgam, has been directed to ensure strict implementation of the order in letter and spirit.
Authorities have appealed to the public to cooperate with the administration in maintaining law, order and cyber security in the larger public interest.
