The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has blocked 1,838,689 SIM cards during the first seven months of 2026 as part of an ongoing enforcement operation targeting illegal connections and the unlawful sale of foreign SIM cards across the country.
Data released by the regulator shows that 691,102 illegal SIMs were deactivated between January and July. A further 903,230 SIMs registered under the national identity cards of deceased individuals were turned off during the same period.
The authority stated that officials took direct action against the continued use of connections belonging to deceased persons following repeated warnings to subscribers.
In addition, enforcement teams blocked 244,357 SIMs linked to cancelled or expired national identity cards.
The operations also targeted the market for foreign connections. The regulator conducted 25 separate raids, resulting in the recovery of 8,051 foreign SIM cards and the arrest of 37 suspects.
PTA confirmed that enforcement operations will continue to eliminate illegal SIM usage and secure the country’s telecommunications network.
