August 5th, 2010 by Jennifer

Saudi Arabia has indicated its intention to ban Blackberry mobile technology instant messaging this Friday, which will make it the first foreign government to implement a Blackberry ban. The decision follows an announcement earlier this week by the the UAE that it intends to ban Blackberry services in October unless Research in Motion (RIM), the device’s Canada-based maker, gives the government access to the Blackberry’s highly encrypted, closed system. The UAE cited security concerns, arguing that “first and foremost, this matter relates to the sovereignty of the state on its information as all ‘BlackBerry’ users from administrators, businessmen, and owners of companies need to keep their data and information within the state to preserve the confidentiality of information.” In a U.S. State Department daily press briefing on Monday, spokesman Philip J. Crowley indicated that the American administration was “disappointed” by the UAE’s announcement, calling the decision “a dangerous precedent” and characterizing free use of new technologies as “an important element of democracy, human rights, and freedom of information and the flow of information in the 21^st century.” Crowley affirmed that the U.S. would be following up with the UAE on the issue.  Estimates suggest that RIM could lose nearly 2 million of its 46 million worldwide customers should other countries follow the UAE and Saudi Arabia’s lead. Nevertheless, analysts predicted that the company will likely prove unwilling to concede, given recent comments by its founder, Mike Lazaridis, to the effect that RIM will refuse to “compromise” the trust of its customers by allowing foreign governments to monitor their communications.

Posted in Freedom, Saudi Arabia, Technology, UAE, US foreign policy |