Dr. Usman Anwar

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in Pakistan has established a dedicated dark web investigation unit to track and prosecute criminals operating on encrypted online platforms. The unit, housed at the National Command and Control Centre (NC3), will use blockchain forensics and open-source intelligence to trace cryptocurrency transactions and identify criminal networks involved in illegal activities like human trafficking and document fraud.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has established a direct communication channel with Meta Asia Pacific to accelerate investigations into cybercrime, online fraud, and hate speech. This partnership allows secure data requests for Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp through the National Command and Control Centre (NC3), reducing response times from months to days.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has disciplined over 100 officials for collusion with human smugglers since the 2023 Greece boat tragedy, which killed at least 209 people. FIA Director General Dr. Usman Anwar reported 132 investigations leading to 68 major and 36 minor penalties, alongside a decline in deportations due to stricter profiling. International concerns include illegal migration routes to the EU via Belarus, Cyprus, and Cambodia, with abuses of study visas and bonded labor reported.

FIA Director General Dr. Usman Anwar stated that offloading passengers is a lawful measure to counter human smuggling and protect citizens, not restrict genuine travel. The FIA has reduced illegal migration through Malawi to zero and cut irregular EU flows by 64% by 2026, identifying Belarus, Cyprus, and Central Asian states as high-risk transit hubs for smuggling networks.