BlackBerry® Use Banned for French Government Officials

French government security experts have reportedly banned the use of the BlackBerry ® handheld device in ministries and in the Presidential palace based on the concern that the devices are vulnerable to snooping by US intelligence agencies. The concern arose from the fact that information sent from a BlackBerry ® device is routed through US- and UK-based servers. French officials fear that this system is vulnerable to snooping by the US National Security Agency (NSA). Research In Motion (RIM), the Canadian company which makes the handhelds, responded by saying that data sent over the BlackBerry ® network is secure because the BlackBerry's encryption system is "the most secure wireless data solution available" and because the origin of e-mail messages cannot be traced or analyzed for content. According to RIM, NSA does not have the ability to see the content of messages which are transmitted through BlackBerry ® servers and that the device had been approved for the transmission of sensitive data by the UK government and by NATO. France's General Secretariat for National Defence first issued the ban on the BlackBerry ® devices over two years ago. Following the recent national elections, a reminder was sent out to coincide with the arrival of newly elected officials and their advisors who may not be familiar with the French administration's rules on using IT in the National Assembly. For more information, see these news sources: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6221146.stm http://tinyurl.com/2kss2q http://news.yahoo.com/s/pcworld/20070620/tc_pcworld/133198 Summary by: Nicholas Wong