Recently Saudi Arabia has banned some of the encrypted services with Blackberry. The reason given for the banning of the encrypted messaging services has been security. The same issue might be faced by Blackberry users in India as the government here is also having security concerns. That might be a different debate but one thing is certain that many users might feel disappointed.
According to Nimbuzz blog 10 percent of the Blackberry users have chosen Nimbuzz as a alternative messaging service.
Features of Nimbuzz for Blackberry
- Nimbuzz works on all Blackberry devices which are OS 4.2.1 and onwards.
- Nimbuzz allows Blackberry users to connect with Facebook, Gtalk, Yahoo, Skype and MSN contacts.
- It’s a free app and also created with Open source technology. The added advantage for users is that it conforms to all government requirements and hence this service probably wont be blocked like Blackberry’s own encrypted service has been.
Currently many governments have had some issues with the encryption service with Blackberry but only a coupe of countries have actually banned it. Majority of Blackberry users are not doing this to send corporate secrets over this network and might feel let down when their favorite service gets banned. This is where they might find Nimbuzz app very useful.
What are your views on Blackberry encrypted messaging service being banned? Do you know of any other great free service like Nimbuzz? Do let me know through your comments.
Link: Nimbuzz for Blackberry
7 Comments
Safety first 🙂 Blackberry ban is beneficial to every1s security.
I am not sure about its security implications. All I have heard about it upto now is that it basically makes snopping difficult. Which ideally should be illegal even for the govt without a warrant. (in most cases)
But I guess the issue is a little more complicated. 😉
Every packet sent from a Blackberry is encrypted and the security agencies do not have the decryption key. It takes around 14 years odd to break the current 128 bit Encryption (If i am correct). So the ban is justified 🙂
Indian govt has given Blackberry service providers deadline till 30th August…
I have been using Nimbuzz and it is one app that I often use. Why are they so scared about this encryption thing again?
So, does that mean that the ISP can trace the location of Nimbuzz users, even though its in the BB network ? or, how it works – that Governments are OK with Nimbuzz, but not OK with BB. Pls advice.
@Sharby: This was during a blockout attempt of BB messenger in Middle East. Nimbuzz was not a replacement as far is encryption is concerned but only for the service it provides.