With Research in Motion’s Blackberry causing such controversy in the Middle East, namely Saudi Arabia, now is the time to sit down and discuss the future of mobile communications and Smartphone’s in the region, and the security concerns that go with them.
As for this week, it was announced that Research in Motion and Saudi Arabia had reached an agreement that will allow BlackBerry services to continue in the country, but the government will be given the ability to monitor messages causing all sorts of privacy concerns. The blackberry is every businessman’s tool of choice, will the ban change the way we communicate within business?
The NGT MENA committee has been formed and will meet to discuss the implications on providers and operators. They also wish to discuss if this will shape the future of telecoms in the Middle East. The committee (hosted by GDS International) will this year comprise of representatives such as Ashfraf Ismail - Mobily, Saudi Arabia, Jan Wuppermann - Vodafone Egypt, Zeyad Al-Obtaibi - Saudi Telecom, Shadi Majdoub - Kuwait National Telecom Company (KNTC) and Khaled Marmoush - Telecom Egypt.
The deal will see a server installed in Saudi Arabia that will allow Saudi authorities to check BlackBerry users’ data. This action was to supplement a possible ban of the devices in the Kingdom.
The Saudi authorities have long been concerned about the use of Blackberry saying, the device’s ability to encrypt messages hampers the security agency’s attempts to prevent terrorism and other illegal activities.
Saudi Arabia isn’t the only country who has said they want to monitor Blackberry communication; the UAE, India and Indonesia have also expressed concern that such mobile communications could be used to violate laws or national concerns.
As a result, Saudi Arabia’s wireless operators include Saudi Telecom, Mobily and a unit of Kuwait’s Mobile Telecommunications were told to stop messaging services at the weekend after a yearlong consultation with RIM failed to bring BlackBerry functions in line with Saudi Arabia’s telecommunications laws.
The ban is to last until operators can test the new server system that will allow security agencies to monitor user data. After that, “appropriate action on whether to suspend the service” will be taken after the proposed solution is shown to comply with regulatory requirements”, a Saudi telecommunications regulator was quoted as saying.
Is this a step too far for the Middle Eastern communication providers and security providers or is it a legitimate concern? Does it breach privacy laws and cause company security concerns? And what about Research in Motion, should they have agreed to such demands or pulled out of the region altogether? These are just some of the questions that will be asked and answered at the Next Generation Telecoms Summit.
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