United Arab Emirates is banning BlackBerry! The Gulf on a berry diet?

By Stela Roman

The United Arab Emirates will ban the use of the BlackBerry data service (email, instant-messaging and web-browsing services) within its borders on the grounds that the device undermines national security. The ban is due to take effect Oct. 11.
The UAE follows Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and India in voicing protest over the device manufacturer, Research in Motion (RIM). Probably some other Middle Eastern nations  will follow suit. The Gulf states have become increasingly concerned that encryption technology used by BlackBerry devices makes it difficult to monitor them. In other words, the U.A.E. is banning the device because the email encryption used by RIM  can't be broken. Emirati authorities explain their decision saying that the ban is based on security concerns. They say that BlackBerry data is automatically shipped to company computers abroad, where it is stored and difficult for local authorities to monitor for illegal activity or abuse.
The United Arab Emirates' ban on BlackBerry services will extend to foreign visitors as well if they are using roaming.Other smartphones, such as Android phones, the iPhone and Windows mobile phones, are not impacted by this ban.
 

Subscribe to: RSS, Email

Comments