UAE authorities have announced that they will ban the use of the BlackBerry, claiming that using the phone poses a security risk. In a statement, authorities said that some of the BlackBerry's functions, such as sending e-mails and messages, can pose a risk since the information is sent overseas and cannot be intercepted in order to determine whether any illegal activity is taking place using cellular phones.

1 million BlackBerry users are expected to be affected by the decision.