Government will send notices to Google and Skype asking them to set up servers in the country and give access to its internet data, a top interior ministry official has said.

Concerned about militants using BlackBerry or Internet to plan attacks, India is pushing the smartphone maker Research in Motion, Google and Skype to open up its data for government monitoring.

India’s BlackBerry users heaved a sigh of relief late Monday after the government gave the smartphone’s Canadian manufacturer a two-month window to provide a permanent solution to avert a ban on its messaging services.

India is also targeting “virtual private networks”, which give employees secure access to their company networks when they are working out of the office.

The maker of the BlackBerry, Canada’s Research in Motion (RIM), has proposed setting up a server in India through which BlackBerry messages can be routed, giving security forces access, the home ministry said in a statement.

RIM’s proposals for “lawful access” to its messages would be “operationalised immediately” and their feasibility assessed, the ministry said.

A RIM official said the company had not compromised its public commitment to make no special deals with governments. Analysts note other security-conscious nations such as China and Russia appear to be satisfied that their intelligence agencies have sufficient access to BlackBerry communications although the arrangements between RIM and these countries are not known.

BlackBerry has also been facing a threatened October 11 ban by the United Arab Emirates and has been negotiating with Saudi Arabia on security issues.

For the Indian government, a ban on BlackBerry services, used widely by India’s elite, could have caused serious communication problems with the Commonwealth Games due to take place in New Delhi in just over a month.

Apple Inc and Nokia, RIM’s two biggest smartphone rivals, may have the most to gain if India blocks BlackBerry services. Nokia said on Monday it will host an email server in India from Nov. 5.

Tags: BlackBerry, Google, Skype

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