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It's official: Saudi Arabia Bans BlackBerries

arstechnica.com — The rumors are true: Saudi Arabia has become the second country inside of a week to block access to Research in Motio... Aug 4, 2010

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88 Comments

therealmisterdAug 4, 2010Buried

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The RIM Blackberry. So secure that backwards thinking governments ban their use.

ninhAug 4, 2010Buried

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If BlackBerries are too secure for those intelligence gatherers that makes me want one. And what does it say about iPhones and Androids?!

kinkykingAug 4, 2010Buried

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damn Saudi Apple fanboys

themazzterAug 4, 2010Buried

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I thought I was going to have to decide between iOS, Windows Mobile, and Android for my new phone. Now BlackBerry is on the radar as well with this... :)

tyg10Aug 4, 2010Buried

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What are they hiding? What's the big deal about communicating with the rest of the world? Huh?

helwa1988Aug 4, 2010Buried

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in the persian gulf iphones and androids (well all cell phones for that matter) sold are unlocked so the service they use is their own country's telephone companies. but with blackberry its on a worldwide network.

alanocuAug 4, 2010Buried

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Bad week for RIM in the Persian Gulf.

hatoummoAug 4, 2010Buried

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Anything the Saudi's do: bats**t crazy.
Moving along.

kennykljAug 4, 2010Buried

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This account has been closed by the user

xero9Aug 4, 2010Buried

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I love my iPhone and hate my BlackBerry, but I do take comfort in knowing that if I loose my BlackBerry, no one will be able to get at my confidential information that's on it. I'm not so sure about my iPhone..

sarthaxAug 4, 2010Buried

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You mean tracking down women who are chatting it up with men while not in the presence of a family member.

tenarethAug 4, 2010Buried

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BlackBerries create a secure link all the way to the end-point, nobody else does. It's one of the reasons secure companies only allow use of Blackberry and no other device.

tntbassAug 4, 2010Buried

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So basically, this makes Blackberries more secure for users in countries where the governments want to spy on their users.

This does add a layer of security, even if its not security on the device itself.

czarcasmAug 4, 2010Buried

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"Some government officials have argued that RIM's tight security and encryption protocols prevent them from monitoring and accessing customer data in the name of national security."

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-20012596-94.html




doctechnicalAug 4, 2010Buried

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Didn't that Franklin dude say something about liberty and safety?

megorAug 4, 2010Buried

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I wonder if they shorted RIM stock before they decided to pull this scam

chroniccolonicAug 4, 2010Buried

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Whew! For a minute I though Barry Soetero would never be allowed back to Saudi Arabia.

sawbutterAug 4, 2010Buried

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BREAKING: The rest of the world doesn't give a sh*t.

eladrinAug 4, 2010Buried

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BlackBerry already lets a bunch of western governments look at the data in their countries (the US being a prime example), so the news isn't that SA wants to spy on people, but that BlackBerry are treating them differently.

czarcasmAug 4, 2010Buried

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Yes and it's not unintended, also BB stores data securely (encrypted) on it's own file system.

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