Saudi Arabia’s Proposal to Ban VOIP and Internet Messaging Services Distresses Residents

The Saudi telecommunication regulators want monitoring access over mobile messaging service WhatsApp and VOIP services Viber and Skype, failing which, the services will be banned in the Kingdom, said a Middle East Online report.

The services, which help in free communication over the Internet connecting people across different countries have gained immense popularity. Applications such as WhatsApp, Viber and Skype that help in free messaging, calling and video conferencing using the internet data on phones and computers are likely to be banned in the Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) has demanded rights to monitor the encrypted applications and will be barred from using if the service providers fail to do so, according to local media reports.

The news comes as a disappointment to many residents who have their families based in different countries as these services provide the cheapest way to communicate often.

According to the Middle East Online report, service providers have been given a deadline till Saturday to meet the demands and necessary actions will be taken to ban these services if they fail to act in accordance.

The news has created chaos among the residents who talk to their families over the Internet, which will no longer be the same if the service providers authorize monitoring of these apps.

"I would be very disappointed if CITC disconnects this server; I use it every day to talk to my wife and children who live in India," Saudi daily quoted Mohammad Akram, Indian schoolteacher as saying, according to the Gulf News report. "Viber is the cheapest way to reach my children. It enables me to chat with them, share pictures and send voice messages. If they ban it, I would have to go back to talking to my children once a month without seeing them until I visit them."

Khalid Tunsi, a finance student in the U.S., expressed his concern while talking to his family based in Jeddah.

"I really don't understand what they mean by monitoring," he said. "Are they going to tap into the conversations I have with my mother and sister? Does that mean they are going to have to wear the veil when they open the camera for me?"

A similar incident took place in 2010, where Saudi Arabia had warned the Blackberry Messenger services would be banned if the company failed to provide access over monitoring messages.