VPN Services Suspended in Poonch and Rajouri

• 02 Dec 2025

Why in News? 

Authorities have suspended all Virtual Private Network (VPN) services in Poonch and Rajouri districts of Jammu division for two months. 

Key Points 

• Official Orders: Authorities issued formal orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) after a sharp rise in suspicious VPN usage. 
  • The administration warned that adversaries could misuse VPN services to create fear or exploit the prevailing security situation. 
• Location Sensitivity: Both districts lie close to the Line of Control (LoC) in the Pir Panjal valley, increasing the importance of digital monitoring. 
• Public Advisory: Authorities stated that the suspension aims to enhance surveillance and safeguard public safety, urging residents to cooperate to maintain law and order. 

Virtual Private Network (VPN) 

• About: A VPN is a technology that establishes a secure and private connection between a user's device and the internet. VPNs encrypt the internet traffic and disguise the user’s online identity.  
  • VPNs can bypass geo-restrictions and censorship. By connecting to a VPN server in a different location, users can access content and websites that may be restricted or blocked in their region. 
  • VPNs encrypt traffic, hide IP addresses and bypass firewalls, making sensitive data vulnerable to cyber attacks and obstructing surveillance. 
• Regulation: In 2022, the Indian Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology introduced regulations mandating VPN providers, data centres, virtual service networks, and cloud providers to record users' personal details for five years.  
• They must also log usage patterns, and service purposes, and report cybersecurity incidents to CERT-In within six hours.