UAE and Saudi to Ban Blackberries

Islamic states are banning the Blackberry because their email and texting systems are encrypted. Meaning that these states can’t eavesdrop on citizens who use them.

From FT here:

The United Arab Emirates is to suspend BlackBerry mobile communication services from October because, it said, they operate outside its laws and raise national security concerns.

Saudi Arabia appeared to be following suit, with an official at Saudi Telecom, a state-controlled company, saying the kingdom was banning BlackBerry messenger services.

BlackBerry services, such as e-mail and instant messaging, use internal encrypted networks that are difficult for governments to monitor. It is the only data services provider operating in the UAE that exports its data offshore and denies authorities access to its systems.

The UAE’s regulator said its decision was based on the fact that “certain BlackBerry services allow users to act without any legal accountability, causing judicial, social and national security concerns for the UAE”.

The UAE’s suspension will begin on October 11 and will also apply to roaming BlackBerry devices. The ban in Saudi Arabia, the Arab Gulf’s most populous nation and the Arab world’s biggest economy, was due to begin this month.

If they ban blackberries, how long before they ban Skype? Or any other VOIP program that uses encryption? And from personal experience, RIM’s communication doesn’t stay encrypted everywhere it goes. Maybe if they are communicating to other RIM devices, but to non-RIM users those texts and emails still go out unencrypted.