VPN, the UAE-way

[5star]

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/if-you-get-caught-using-vpn-uae-you-will-face-fines-545000-1572888


interesting times ahead....
i guess the 2 big Telcom companies are not making enough money....
be careful out there. The fines are no fun....

[fatbus]

Puts a big shovel full in the sh!t bucket!

[Cloud Bunny]

Not being too skilled or knowledgeable in the voodoo world of IT but how will they be able to check on this without going door to door to check people's computer equipment? The whole point of the VPN is to make your internet presence invisible right?
Seems like the usual response though, few people using the service illegally therefore let's punish the entire population and prevent them having anymore contact with their home country in terms of catch up TV for shows, sports etc etc. just one more needless restriction.
I thought I would be able to hang it out but looks like it's time to start putting that exit plan in motion.

[Fuel-Off]

They've seem to gone a tad overboard - they've blocked some articles from some Mid East news agencies.

Fuel-Off :ok:

[fatbus]

Greed . Maybe desperate for telecommunications revenue.

[ExDubai]

Greed . Maybe desperate for telecommunications revenue.
Yeep, nothing else then greed. "Etislut" complained since years about Skype and Co. They are such a thread for the UAE security :} Problem is that it is easy to find out who's using a VPN/Proxy to bypass them.

[lospilotos]

Not being too skilled or knowledgeable in the voodoo world of IT but how will they be able to check on this without going door to door to check people's computer equipment? The whole point of the VPN is to make your internet presence invisible right?


Make no mistake, every single data package being transmitted in and out of the UAE is monitored. Using an encrypted VPN will hide what you are downloading for most prying eyes, but not for a government in total control of the internet. It's even simpler to just discover a VPN connection being established, so if indeed the bare use of VPN, even for legit purposes like accessing a remote corporate network, is illegal now, they don't even have to resort to Deep Package Inspection to see what you are doing over that VPN, you're busted anyway.

[5star]

Surely it will also have to do with the increased terrorist activity in the ME. However the implications for us expats are much wider...
It will limit the number of people sending out the true message about what is going here on websites like this one (I have never posted without using vpn).
Forget about watching some of the foreign livestreams in some countries, or a quick visit to your favourite 'kinky' site during thr summer ;-) (no we are never doing that)...

This new law has huge implication and it is clearly another attempt to control your life.

[Cloud Bunny]

Sure is going to slow productivity down though with 95% of the countries population banged up in jail!

[nolimitholdem]

I don't wish this to devolve into a geekfest mud-slinging, but...

Deep Packet Inspection does not enable decryption of data being carried over a VPN. Some sort of decryption is still required and requires pretty heavy artillery, cryptographically speaking. Think NSA, not UAE.

Encrypted connections are used all the time. All online banking uses some form of it, as well as many commercial sites such as Gmail and so on. Heck even EK's portal uses encryption. (The "S" in https is for "secure".) Not much reason in having passwords and so on if everyone can see them.

The point is, your data can't be read, but the encrypted data stream can be seen. In other words they may not be able to see inside the tunnel, but the existence of the tunnel itself may now get people in trouble. My guess is the UAE gatekeepers will start cracking down on users connecting to known VPN servers. But they can't just block all encrypted connections or most of the Internet would grind to a halt, given how much traffic travels encrypted. Then again they do seem to want to revert to some sort of Dark Ages so who knows.

China expends an enormous of money and resources attempting to block VPN's and still is unable to do more than make it mildly difficult to circumvent. I seriously doubt the UAE will do better.

[The Turtle]

As soon as I heard about this the very same conclusion came to mind....China

[ExDubai]

I don't wish this to devolve into a geekfest mud-slinging, but...

Deep Packet Inspection does not enable decryption of data being carried over a VPN. Some sort of decryption is still required and requires pretty heavy artillery, cryptographically speaking. Think NSA, not UAE.

Encrypted connections are used all the time. All online banking uses some form of it, as well as many commercial sites such as Gmail and so on. Heck even EK's portal uses encryption. (The "S" in https is for "secure".) Not much reason in having passwords and so on if everyone can see them.

The point is, your data can't be read, but the encrypted data stream can be seen. In other words they may not be able to see inside the tunnel, but the existence of the tunnel itself may now get people in trouble. My guess is the UAE gatekeepers will start cracking down on users connecting to known VPN servers. But they can't just block all encrypted connections or most of the Internet would grind to a halt, given how much traffic travels encrypted. Then again they do seem to want to revert to some sort of Dark Ages so who knows.

China expends an enormous of money and resources attempting to block VPN's and still is unable to do more than make it mildly difficult to circumvent. I seriously doubt the UAE will do better.

And that's enough to bring people in trouble. Finding out that someone uses a VPN/Tunnel isn't rocket science.

[Emma Royds]

Emirates 24/7 VPN use punishable under law (http://http://www.emirates247.com/business/technology/vpn-use-punishable-under-law-dubai-police-2015-03-12-1.583914)

The above article stated that:

While suo moto action may not be initiated against anyone using a VPN service, additional charges can be filed against a person caught in an illegal act and when he or she is found to have used VPN as well.

While the law is rather opaque in this part of the world, the above does seem to indicate that they are perhaps more interested in VPN use being linked to other crime rather than focusing on VPN use alone?

If the UAE was serious on tackling VPN use then why have they not gone down the same road as the Chinese and the Iranians and try to restrict VPN use altogether?

[lospilotos]

Emirates 24/7 VPN use punishable under law (http://http://www.emirates247.com/business/technology/vpn-use-punishable-under-law-dubai-police-2015-03-12-1.583914)

The above article stated that:

While suo moto action may not be initiated against anyone using a VPN service, additional charges can be filed against a person caught in an illegal act and when he or she is found to have used VPN as well.

While the law is rather opaque in this part of the world, the above does seem to indicate that they are perhaps more interested in VPN use being linked to other crime rather than focusing on VPN use alone?

If the UAE was serious on tackling VPN use then why have they not gone down the same road as the Chinese and the Iranians and try to restrict VPN use altogether?

Yeah Emma, that was from 2015 when VPN was only considered illegal if used in connection with internet crime. The new law states that even preventing discovery of a crime, even if no crime is being committed, is a crime.

Back to the geek-fest, well no, they can probably not decode the content of your "secure" connection, but the can, 100%, see what type of traffic is being tunnled through the VPN. Even if you use port 443 for the VPN they can differentiate between a normal SSL connection from your browser and a VPN connection and also see if you are using the VPN for i.e. VoIP. Packet size and timings are giving it away.

[natops]

Don't you guys love this place?

[falconeasydriver]

In the UAE at the moment, using a VPN, I await a knock at the door ��

[safelife]

Working in China, I can tell you guys two things:

- it is possible to determine wether you are using a VPN. In some regions in China doing so earns you an interview with the "Cyber Police"
- learning from the Chinese, I can truly recommend "Shadowsocks". The makers are in jail here already, but the project is live and a fine thing.

[littlejet]

I use VPN for one thing only....and all of you as well...admit!

[ClassCbird]

LittleJet? More like LittlePr!¢k :rolleyes:

[Emma Royds]

lospilotos

My apologies - thanks for the correction! :ok:

[lospilotos]

GulfNews (http://m.gulfnews.com/news/uae/society/telecom-authority-responds-to-vpn-use-rumours-1.1872017)

So the way I read it:

OK to use VPN to access this site, since it is not blocked (as long as you don't commit something considered a crime in the UAE on here)

OK, to use VPN to access your local home TV, as that is actually a restriction of the broadcasting company back home, not the UAE.

NOT OK, to browse your favourite honey website.

Comments?

[Fuel-Off]

Again, you need to prove that you haven't been using the VPN for illegal acts. They can't see what's been tunnelled but they can certainly see the tunnel. Sure, you can clear your history but the most diligent forensic IT investigator can dig out what you've been looking at once they seize your device on suspicion of doing something naughty with a VPN.

As mentioned it would rely on semantics, which in this part of the world, isn't exactly considered .

Fuel-Off :ok:

[MosEisley]

http://m.gulfnews.com/news/uae/crime/using-vpns-what-uae-residents-need-to-know-1.1872123

Another gulf news article

It's not as bad as originally reported

[Hypoxic01]

No VPN ban in UAE, says telecoms authority - Business and News (http://businessandnews.com/en/news/no-vpn-ban-in-uae-says-telecoms-authority/)

[ThunderHorse]

I don't wish this to devolve into a geekfest mud-slinging, but...

Deep Packet Inspection does not enable decryption of data being carried over a VPN. Some sort of decryption is still required and requires pretty heavy artillery, cryptographically speaking. Think NSA, not UAE.

Encrypted connections are used all the time. All online banking uses some form of it, as well as many commercial sites such as Gmail and so on. Heck even EK's portal uses encryption. (The "S" in https is for "secure".) Not much reason in having passwords and so on if everyone can see them.

The point is, your data can't be read, but the encrypted data stream can be seen. In other words they may not be able to see inside the tunnel, but the existence of the tunnel itself may now get people in trouble. My guess is the UAE gatekeepers will start cracking down on users connecting to known VPN servers. But they can't just block all encrypted connections or most of the Internet would grind to a halt, given how much traffic travels encrypted. Then again they do seem to want to revert to some sort of Dark Ages so who knows.

China expends an enormous of money and resources attempting to block VPN's and still is unable to do more than make it mildly difficult to circumvent. I seriously doubt the UAE will do better.

how likely is someone to get caught? and what would you do if you arrived in the UAE from summer vacation and used a vpn a few times in the last 2 days from their phone.