The Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC), Saudi Arabia's telecoms authority, has given BlackBerry service providers an additional 48 hours grace period to meet its security concerns or be banned. The CITC issued the new deadline in a statement released Saturday and carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA). This follows the previous statement the CITC made on Aug. 3, saying it will ban BlackBerry's controversial messaging service. The grace period ends on Monday, Aug. 9. Saudi Gazette reported Saturday that BlackBerry's messaging services were restored Friday after a few hours break, despite a ban that was to take effect the same day. Many users reported that the services were interrupted at around 0930 GMT, but four hours later were back online. John Sfakianakis, who uses three BlackBerrys operated by different telecom companies and is chief economist at the Riyadh-based Banque Saudi Fransi-Credit Agricole Group, said access to messaging, e-mails and the Web was interrupted for a brief period early Friday but was quickly restored. Some Saudi Telecom Company (STC) customers received a text message notifying them of the CITC decision to suspend the messaging service from Friday, Aug. 6. However, customers of the other two operators – Mobily and Zain – did not experience any interruption in service. A Mobily Customer Service representative told Saudi Gazette that the BBM service is continuing because they did not receive an official circular from the CITC to suspend it. The Saudi telecommunications authority announced Tuesday that it ordered the country's three providers to block key BlackBerry services or face a $1.3-million fine as of Aug. 6. The regulator said “the way BlackBerry services are provided currently does not meet the regulatory criteria of the commission and the licensing conditions”. Meanwhile, local media quoted a CITC official as saying that the Kingdom and the makers of the BlackBerry smartphone have reached a deal on accessing users' data that will avert a ban on the phone's messenger service. The agreement would involve placing a BlackBerry server inside Saudi Arabia, to allow the government to monitor users' messages and allay official fears the service could be used for criminal purposes, according to the report. The deal could have wide-ranging implications for several other countries, including India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which have expressed similar concerns over how BlackBerry maker Research in Motion (RIM) handles its data. The Saudi regulatory official, who spoke on condition of anonymity according to the report, because he was not authorized to discuss the details of the deal with the media, said tests were now underway to determine how to install a BlackBerry server inside the country. The Kingdom is one of a number of countries expressing concern that the device is a security threat because encrypted information sent on the phones is routed through overseas computers – making it impossible for local governments to monitor. The UAE has announced it will ban BlackBerry e-mail, messaging and Web browsing starting in October, and Indonesia and India are also demanding greater control over the data. Analysts say RIM's expansion into fast-growing emerging markets is threatening to set off a wave of regulatory challenges, as its commitment to keep corporate e-mails secure rubs up against the desires of local law enforcement. BlackBerry phones are known to be popular both among businesspeople and youth in the Kingdom, which has an estimated 750,000 users.
