Differences in education between girls and boys persist in Pakistan, and the distribution of household resources and socioeconomic disparities are compounding the problem. This paper determines education attainment (primary to tertiary level) and current enrollment and explores underlying gender differences with reference to per capita income and socioeconomic characteristics of the household by using survey data of Pakistan (2005–2019) that have never been used in this context before. The potential endogeneity bias between income and education is addressed through the two-stage residual inclusion (2SRI) method that is appropriate for non-linear models used in this study. Findings indicate that income is likely to increase and facilitate a significant transition from primary- to tertiary-level education attainment. The boys have a higher likelihood to increase tertiary-level education attainment by household income. However, the probability of current enrollment is equivalent for girls and boys after controlling for endogeneity. The gender effects of Oaxaca-type decomposition indicate higher unexplained variation that describes a strong gender gap between boys and girls. The standard deviation for education inequality and gender gap ratio confirm that higher levels of discrimination and lower economic returns are associated with girls’ education, and individual and community attributes favor boys’ education. Findings suggest policies and educational strategies that focus on female education and lower-income households to build socioeconomic stability and sustainable human capital in the country.

The COVID‐19 (Coronoavirus Disease 2019) pandemic has had many disastrous effects on welfare globally, particularly in European countries. In recent research, a new debate has arisen as a result of the shift of day‐to‐day activities to virtual platforms, which has augmented concerns related to smart (data) access and smart (data) protection. This study examines the economic, social, and psychological indicators of welfare gain within the context of the COVID‐19 pandemic and examines their impact on smart access and smart protection using the data of Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe and real‐time Google Trends from June to August 2020. The findings indicate a negative relationship between smart access and economic crisis caused by COVID‐19, while households with sufficient resources support smart protection. Psychological effects including nervousness and anxiety are highly related to smart access. Likewise, being helpful in a time of uncertainty, societal contact, and social measures (hygiene and face mask) significantly and positively impact smart protection. The findings suggest that countries should combine their welfare agencies with health and economic institutes, and initiate projects related to cybersecurity.