BlackBerry Will Not Shut Down in Pakistan

December 31, 2015, 4:32 PM UTC
BlackBerry Buyout Deal Collapses, CEO To Be Replaced
MIAMI, FL - NOVEMBER 04: Blackberry cell phones are seen for sale at Fixx wireless on November 4, 2013 in Miami, Florida. Blackberry announced today it has abandoned plans to sell the company and that CEO Thorsten Heins will be leaving the company and step down from the board. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Photo by Joe Raedle — Getty Images

BlackBerry (BBRY) said it has decided to continue its operations in Pakistan as the government dropped a request for access to users’ data.

The company, which has faced similar problems in the past in India, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia, had said last month it would delay shutting down its operations in Pakistan until Dec. 30.

State-run Pakistan Telecommunication Authority had in July demanded that the company give access to its BlackBerry Enterprise Services (BES), which encrypts data such as emails and instant messages.

BlackBerry, formerly known as Research In Motion, said on Thursday it would not provide access to its BES servers.

A report released in July by British-based watchdog Privacy International said Pakistan’s powerful military intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), was seeking to dramatically expand its ability to intercept communications.

Read More

Artificial IntelligenceCryptocurrencyMetaverseCybersecurityTech Forward