Soon, govt may snoop into your personal chat messages

The government today made it clear that social networking sites must comply with the security agencies' requirement for a real-time monitoring of their user data to ensure that national security is not compromised.

In the backdrop of a raging controversy over BlackBerry posing security concerns, security agencies have asked the Telecom Ministry to provide real-time monitoring of various social networking sites like Facebook, Google, Skype and Twitter, among others, Ministry of State for Telecom and IT Sachin Pilot said.

"We cant afford to take chances with national security," Pilot said on the sidelines of an international conference organised by the US-based IT giant AMD, the world's second largest chip maker.

"There are a whole list of companies that have been asked to give (access), provide monitoring solution, because law enforcement agencies, the home ministry and intelligence agencies want information for national security," he said.

"Papers were exchanged months ago. The discussions are on and we are looking at finding a solution soon, since it is a matter of national security," he said in reply to queries by reporters whether government has sent notices to Google and Skype.

The minister made it clear that the government will not leave any loop holes which may be detrimental to national security.

AMD (India) managing director Ravi Swaminathan said, "We believe that forums like these create a platform for the industry to come together and address relevant societal issues."

"Technology has given rise to the awareness and aspirations of many and at the same time is playing the role of an enabler for governance and regulating ethical issues," he added.

Addressing the international conference 'Ethics, Governance and Technology', organised by AMD and an industry chamber, Pilot said the government will soon announce an IT policy which will address the concerns like piracy and financial frauds.

Computing has moved beyond increasing clock speeds to enhancing experiences and has become a catalyst for improving efficiencies, timeliness and responsiveness in service delivery, Swaminathan said.

As a representative of the technology industry at this event, AMD reiterates its commitment to remain at the heart of simplifying technology, deploying innovation to make technology affordable and inclusive, he said.

The government had earlier asked Canadian firm Research in Motion, which provides BlackBerry services, to hand over an interception solution for its BlackBerry Internet Services (BIS), BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) and BlackBerry Enterprise Servers (BES) over security concerns that terrorists may use these services, since the data is highly encrypted and security agencies can't monitor such services.

Skype, which was earlier this year bought by Microsoft Corporation (MSFT), provides telephony services over the Internet, while Google offers a host of services like search and e-mail.