Saudi Arabia delays BlackBerry ban

(News Today) - The Saudi authorities have agreed to delay until Monday a ban blocking the instant messaging services offered by BlackBerry, the Saudi press agency reported on Sunday.

The delay on the ban has been allowed pending the testing of a server based in the kingdom bypassing the two servers currently operated by RIM, Blackberry's owner, in Britain and Canada.

"Three servers are being tested, one for each of the three mobile operators. We're waiting for feedback [from the telecoms firms]," an official from the Communications and Information Technology Commission's technical department told Reuters.

A banker based in Saudi Arabia said on Sunday that his BlackBerry was still working but that it had shut down briefly on Friday morning. It was not clear whether the Friday shutdown was a glitch or whether it was caused by testing of a new server, he said.

Saudi Arabia last week joined the United Arab Emirates in threatening to block BlackBerry services after a six-month grace period had reportedly been granted in May. The UAE has said it will block all e-mail, web browsing and messaging services.

Why BlackBerry faces UAE wrath

On Saturday, the Saudi Communications and Information Technology Commission gave the three telecom operators operating in the kingdom 48 hours to try out "the proposed solutions and fulfil the requested regulatory requirements".

Analysts said that the Saudi threat was aimed more at limiting social networking among young people while the UAE's intervention has been motivated more by security concerns since the killing of a senior leader of Hamas, the Palestinian militant group, in Dubai, and the monitoring of trade with Iran. Those intent on avoiding pervasive monitoring by security services are thought to be able to use the Blackberry's network.

"I think it's about brinkmanship. I think they [the Saudi authorities] are trying to force RIM to allow them monitoring rights," the Saudi based banker said on Sunday.

"Security is a secondary issue. It's more about girls meeting boys," the banker said.

Source : CNN

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