The Pakistan Army has directed its officers and soldiers to stop using WhatsApp for official communication and gradually shift to the Chinese messaging platform WeChat, citing security concerns.
According to the directive, the military believes WhatsApp poses a higher risk of surveillance, data leaks and hacking of official conversations.
Personnel have been instructed to move official chats to WeChat.
The move comes as Pakistan places greater emphasis on securing military communications in the face of increasing cyber threats.
WeChat, China's largest messaging platform, offers text messaging, voice and video calls, file sharing and digital payment services, making it an all-in-one communication platform.
The decision also reflects growing defence cooperation between China and Pakistan, which has expanded beyond military hardware to include cybersecurity and intelligence cooperation. The use of a common communication platform could facilitate coordination during border discussions, joint military exercises and other collaborative activities.
The move contrasts with India's approach to the platform.
In June 2020, the Indian government banned WeChat along with 59 other Chinese applications, citing national security concerns and alleging that user data was being transmitted outside the country.
While India prohibited the app over security concerns, Pakistan's military has chosen WeChat as its platform for official internal communication.