Ban on BlackBerry unlikely soon, Govt may talk to telcos

Indian security agencies have expressed their concern about emails sent over BlackBerry networks, as these are encrypted, which makes it difficult to track the nature of information sent, reports Ruchi Hajela.

The government is unlikely to bring any immediate ban on use of BlackBerry services, which have recently raised concerns relating security issues.

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Telecom operators and government officials are meeting on Friday and the BlackBerry issue is expected to be discussed.

Indian security agencies have expressed their concern about emails sent over BlackBerry networks, as these are encrypted and transferred as packets of data, which makes it difficult to track the nature of information sent.

The encryption process is a proprietary technology of Canada based Research in Motion, or RIM. Moreover, the servers are located mostly across countries like Canada, US and Russia, and none in India.

The Indian government wants access to information sent over BlackBerry networks, failing which it had earlier asked operators to shut down the service by March 31.

RIM has refused to comment on the regulatory stance of the government.

But an industry official said on condition of anonymity that the government may relax the March 31 deadline in a bid to find a solution to the vexed issue.

Telecom service providers like Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Reliance Communications offer BlackBerry services in India.

Research In Motion operates in about 130 countries and operates through strategic partnerships that help local telecom operators in various nations tie up to its proprietary secure networks.