[huridocs-tech] India: Government agencies seen as threat to Internet privacy

Yahoo India News
Tuesday March 13, 1:23 PM

Government agencies seen as threat to Internet privacy

 BANGALORE (Reuters) - Government agencies pose a major threat to the
privacy of the country's Internet surfers because they routinely seek
personal details of users, industry officials say.

 Government agencies such as the police regularly seek by phone personal
and private information of users of rediffmail, a free email service, Ajit
Balakrishnan, chairman of leading consumer portal Rediff.com, said late on
Monday.

 "It happens at least six times in a six-month period. But we are adamant
and we don't give out the details," Balakrishnan told an Asian technology
conference in Bangalore.

 R. Ramaraj, managing director of Satyam Infoway Ltd, the country's largest
private Internet access provider, told Reuters that the company too
received similar requests.

 "It is largely from the police...maybe they are an interface for other
(government) agencies," Ramaraj said.

 Satyam Infoway has over 400,000 Internet subscribers and is the country's
second largest Internet access provider after state-run Videsh Sanchar
Nigam Ltd.

 Balakrishnan later told Reuters that the demands for private details of
users largely originated from Hyderabad where he said rediffmail had a
large user base.

 "We cannot give it to them unless they produce a magistrate's order,"
Balakrishnan said adding that rediffmail had about six million users signed
up for the service.

 Lawmakers last year approved an information technology bill that allows
the police to search any public place and arrest without warrant anyone
suspected of committing a "cybercrime".

 The arrests can, however, be made only by high-ranking police officers and
under reasonable grounds to investigate.

 Internet access providers are also required by law to set up surveillance
systems to detect illegal or criminal activities by users.

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