Techtree News Staff, Mar 14, 2008 2350 hrs IST
The government is not considering an India ban on the BlackBerry service at this point of time, says a Reuters report.
We reported about the Indian government considering a total ban on the BlackBerry service in the country, for security reasons.
The government had asked Research in Motion (RIM) to provide them with access to algorithms required to decrypt BlackBerry messages latest by March 31st else face a total ban on the service in India.
However the latest as per a Reuters report is that India is not considering banning the service at this point of time -- according to a top official in the telecom ministry.
It all started with Tata Teleservices wanting to offer the service in India. However the Department of Telecom (DoT) rejected their application saying the service doesn't allow for lawful interception, and is hence perceived as a threat to national security. Typically, encrypted messages sent from BlackBerry handsets cannot be intercepted by anyone; not even RIM.
Not one to keep quiet, Tata Teleservices questioned the DoT decision, alleging that other telecom operators had been unfairly given rights to offer the BlackBerry service. DoT promptly sent out letters to Airtel, Vodafone, RCom, and BPL, demanding an explanation and access to intercept emails.
Meanwhile, the Reuters report of date quotes Telecom Secretary, Siddhartha Behrua, as saying, "There is no question of banning at this point. We are not interested that we say BlackBerry will not be used in this country."
Telecom Minister, A Raja, said, "The interactions are going on with various stakeholders, including the home ministry... I do believe it will be resolved."
Meanwhile, DoT has apprised RIM officials of the various concerns, and had a meeting scheduled for today evening with representatives of four mobile service providers that offer BlackBerry in India.
"We want operators to talk to BlackBerry people and put pressure on them to provide the necessary and satisfactory answers to security agencies," said Behrua.
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Well the issue relating to security has to be explained to people in a candid manner. At times, government officials use this term to discrimnate aginst some companies.
sanarun | daman | 16/03/08 02:09 PM | Report abuse Reply
EXCELLENT
GAUTAM SEN | KOLKATA | 15/03/08 02:50 PM | Report abuse Reply