Indonesian government threatens to cut BlackBerry data service

2011-12-11 07:15:21 GMT+7 (ICT)

JAKARTA (BNO NEWS) -- The Indonesian government has threatened to shut down BlackBerry data services in the country because the smartphone's manufacturer "has not been cooperative," a local newspaper reported on Saturday.

The Indonesian Telecommunication Regulation Body (BRTI) said it may have to end BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) and other BlackBerry services after the smartphone's manufacturer, Research In Motion (RIM), opted to build a regional data center in Singapore rather than in Indonesia.

"Because RIM has not been cooperative, it is possible that we will soon end BIS (BlackBerry Internet Service) and BBM service. BlackBerry therefore, would just be like other cellular phones," BRTI member Heru Sutadi told the Jakarta Post.

The government cited "security reasons" when explaining why the services should be shut down. Currently, all BlackBerry data is processed through the Canadian tech company RIM, which makes it impossible for the government to monitor and protect data sent by its millions of Indonesian users.

"With the condition as it is now, we warn that the country's users to be cautious about using BlackBerry because the data exchanged is not safe or cannot be guaranteed of its safety," Heru said.

In September, RIM agreed with the Indonesian government that it would establish a server by December 31 as part of four other agreements. Although the agreement did not specify where the server would be built, the government felt that RIM should make Indonesia a priority as it is home to the largest number of BlackBerry users in Southeast Asia.

Earlier this year, Indonesia's communication ministry also threatened to block BlackBerry internet browsing capabilities if pornographic internet content was not filtered out by RIM. The company later agreed to filter porn. Indonesia has enacted a strict anti-pornography law since 2008.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-12-11

Cutting service because they're moving out as a threat to stay or planning on more censorship?

Cutting service because they're moving out as a threat to stay or planning on more censorship?

Makes you wonder what they are so afraid of.

Any country that threatens RIM due to not being able to ease-drop on their citizens should be condemned and ridiculed.