Algeria to ban BlackBerry fearing danger on its economy and security

Algeria is the latest country to review the use of the BlackBerry and say it will ban the smartphone if it is ruled a threat to national security.

• Algeria joins a growing list of countries including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and India that are concerned they do not have access to encrypted BlackBerry user data.

• “We are looking at the issue. If we find out that it is a danger for our economy and our security, we will stop it,”  Telecommunications Minister Moussa Benhamadi said.

• BlackBerry use in the country of some of 35 million people is not widespread. However, Algeria’s government imposes strict restrictions on the use of telecommunications equipment.

• Canada’s International Trade Minister Peter Van Loan vowed to work with the countries involved and Waterloo, Ont.-based BlackBerry maker Research In Motion on a compromise.

• “We think there are broad implications about the importance of the freedom to communicate and to convey information,” Van Loan told CBC News. “We are working closely with Research In Motion and the governments in question to ensure that we can try to get to some satisfactory solution.”

• Earlier this week, the telecom regulator in the United Arab Emirates said its looming ban on BlackBerry email, messaging and web browsing services will extend to foreign visitors, too, raising the stakes in its dispute with the maker of the popular business tools.

• The U.A.E. contends some BlackBerry features operate outside the country’s laws, “causing judicial, social and national security concerns.”

• At the heart of their concerns is the way the BlackBerry handles data, which is encrypted and routed through RIM’s servers overseas, where it cannot be monitored for illegal activity.