BlackBerry-maker RIM is confident of resolving India concerns

BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion said on Friday it was confident that India's security concerns could be resolved to their mutual satisfaction, and said it has consistent global standards for lawful access, which do not include "special deals for specific countries."

India has threatened to shut off RIM's encrypted email and instant messaging services unless it gains access to them, in a campaign driven by fears that unmonitored communication puts the country's security at risk.

In an India customer update obtained by Reuters, the Canadian firm said it sought to address what it said were inaccurate rumours and speculation about a possible ban on its enterprise service.

"RIM and the government of India have had a variety of constructive discussions over the past several months and we are pleased with the outcomes and progress of these discussions," its statement said.

"There has never been a ban imposed on any BlackBerry service in India and all services continue to be fully available today," it said.

The company said its ongoing discussions with the Indian government are "positive and progressive."

It said its security architecture is the same globally, and the company has no ability to provide customers' encryption keys.

"We share a common interest in continuing to satisfy the legitimate security needs of corporate and government customers while also acknowledging the equally legitimate need for law enforcement agencies to investigate illegal activities within the globally accepted norms of lawful access practises," it said.

RIM averted a ban in India, the world's fastest growing mobile market, in August. Late last month New Delhi said RIM had set up an interim arrangement for lawful interception of BlackBerry Messenger services and assured a final solution by the end of January.

A government source had said talks continued over access to enterprise emails.

The company also escaped threatened bans in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in October after reaching agreements over access, though RIM hasn't detailed how it resolved those disputes.

The BlackBerry maker says its system is designed so that only the sponsoring business or organization has the technical capability to grant access to encrypted enterprise email.