
UAE introduces federal law banning the use of VPNs to access blocked services - subliminalpanda
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/if-you-get-caught-using-vpn-uae-you-will-face-fines-545000-1572888
======
794CD01
The headline is sensationalized and inaccurate.

The actual law reads:

>“Whoever uses a fraudulent computer network protocol address (IP address) by
using a false address or a third-party address by any other means for the
purpose of committing a crime or preventing its discovery, shall be punished
by temporary imprisonment and a fine of no less than Dhs 500,000 and not
exceeding Dhs 2,000,000, or either of these two penalties.”

Key point being "for the purpose of committing a crime or preventing its
discovery". It's a way to throw the book at people already committing crimes.
Rather than being outraged at this, it would be more appropriate to focus on
the things that are crimes and should not be, like their moronic VoIP laws.

~~~
ptaipale
Well, a part of the problem obviously is that it's "throwing the book at
people already committing crimes" in a place where the definition of a "crime"
is not very reasonable.

For instance, a woman getting raped is defined as "extramarital sex" which is
a crime.

[https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/26/hundreds-of-
wo...](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/26/hundreds-of-women-
prosecuted-for-extramarital-sex-in-uae-finds-bbc)

~~~
CodeSheikh
It baffles me how your ignorance fuels you to connect two unrelated things,
cyber crime vs sexual offenses. The problem everyone trying to discuss here is
"Whether any usage of VPN" is banned in the UAE?

Next time you go see a doctor for a throat rash are you going to get
colonoscopy too?

A good discussion here on same topic: [https://www.quora.com/Is-using-a-VPN-
in-the-UAE-illegal](https://www.quora.com/Is-using-a-VPN-in-the-UAE-illegal)

UAE is not USA where anyone can use/say/do anything by anyway they like. It is
a sovereign state, a monarchy. She welcomes people to live there in a very
healthy and free lifestyle as long as you dont step out of your bounds.
Trouble makers are going to find troubles to make even they live on an
isolated island. I hope UAE govt come through and make an official elaborated
statement that VPN usage for business/work related purpose is not discouraged.

~~~
ptaipale
> _connect two unrelated things, cyber crime vs sexual offenses._

Are you absolutely sure they are that unrelated?

Anyway, my point was that some of the things classified as "crimes" \-- more
explicitly, sexual offences -- in UAE are just a vile miscarriage of actual
justice. Therefore, just referring to something not being a problem because
it's "throwing the book at people already committing crimes" is not that good.

I don't know if people misread my comment because I did not elaborate too much
about the case I linked. The problem is not that a sexual offence is a crime
in UAE. The problem is that when a group of men rapes a woman in UAE, it is a
sexual offence _committed by that woman_ when she makes the mistake of
reporting it to authorities. I find that approach reprehensible. Yes, I know
I'm applying my own Western norms to other people. When visiting places like
UAE, I of course respect the local practices to avoid committing offences
there, but I still do think some of their ideas of sexual offences what are
backwards, reactionary and reprehensible.

What you say about UAE as a sovereign state is of course quite true: She
welcomes people to live there in a very healthy and free lifestyle as long as
you dont step out of your bounds.

The same could be said about any country, every repressive dictatorship. Life
is fine as long as you don't step out of your "bounds". The "bounds" in UAE
are less unreasonable than in DPRK, for instance, but I consider some of them
still problematic. As such, this statement "throwing the book at people
already committing crimes" is not really saying anything. The VPN rules just
add to the injury of having some very, very unreasonable laws.

(UAE is not USA, and I'm not from USA, either, so perhaps you are now making
too many assumptions.)

~~~
CodeSheikh
ptaipale perhaps I did misinterpret your comment and jumped too quickly on
stating things. My whole point was let's stick to the thesis of the problem
here i.e. VPN ban. People who want to use VPN for work related purposes what
is going to happen to them?

UAE like many other countries in that region have left a breadcrumb of
problems behind them. In order to fit in to global fraternity they have to
make drastic changes. Changes that cannot be made overnight. For example they
recently introduced a law about fining employers who withhold paychecks for
more than ten days etc. Neither I am an Emirati or live in that region. LIke
many, I would simply get affected as a frequent traveler if such ban becomes a
harsh reality.

~~~
EdHominem
You think they can't decriminalize _being raped_ overnight? It's easy, strike
that law from the books. Done.

In a monarchy simply decriminalizing something can happen with the stoke of a
pen. There's no roadblock other than a lack of desire.

------
mrgoldenbrown
Only a fine? Sounds pretty lenient in a place where being gay is a death
penalty. Even hetero kissing in public can get you deported.

~~~
aioprisan
Add to that "temporary imprisonment". How temporary that is depends on how
much you value your freedom.

------
jswny
Does anyone know how this affects foreigners? A relative of mine is a pilot
and flies to Dubai a few times a month usually. She always uses a VPN to watch
Netflix while she's there. Is she at risk?

~~~
Archio
Netflix has blocked VPNs for at least a few months now. Unless she uses VPNs
for other things, she won't be using one anyway.

~~~
narrowrail
Just to be clear, one can setup OpenVPN on their home network (I have it
running on my dd-wrt router). So, Netflix has taken measures to prevent usage
of VPN services, but not VPNs, per se.

------
titomc
This is for boosting profitability for Etisalat. The sole telecom provider in
UAE. This mainly targets migrants workers in UAE. They get paid 90 or 100
dirhams/month. Etisalat charges a lot to make international calls. The migrant
workers have to spent atleast 20% of their salary to call their dear ones,so
the migrants make use of VOIP services. This move is to ban the low salaried
workers from using VOIP. I have seen plain cloths officers randomly checking
migrants mobile phones in public to see if they have installed any VOIP
software.

------
telesilla
Well that's awkward. I had a friend visiting there for business and she needed
to access her home computer while away. So as any good friend does I set up a
VPN for her. I am not sure who she would have been more angry at - me or the
UAE - should there have been repercussions.

------
joebergeron
So silly. And for what, to prevent people from "illegally" using Skype? Plenty
of sane, rational reasons to use a VPN that don't involve VoIP services.

This move directly supports monopolization of the market for VPNs.

~~~
hobs
No, to prevent people from "illegally" using VOIP services they cant monitor
with advanced tools and monitor.

~~~
morgante
The VOIP ban in the UAE is as much about protectionism for Etisalat as it is
about surveillance.

------
geff82
That just killed Dubai/UAE off my list of countries I consider moving to.

~~~
mrgoldenbrown
I hope that it was only on your list at all because you're somehow unaware of
their human trafficking and slave labor issues? It seems like it should have
been crossed off your list a long time ago...
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_the_United_Ara...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_the_United_Arab_Emirates)

~~~
geff82
I instantly want to post a link to Guantanamo as a counter argument.

VAE are far from perfect and I know it. Compared to many other countries in
the region, it feels like pure "freedom" to be there. I found the residents to
be relatively open minded. And their respected leader, while an absolut
monarch, has the problem he has to rule a country that has a heterogenous
population that is partly ultra-modern and ultra-conservative and he does a
quite good job (compared to other countries in the region, again). For
example, drinking alcohol is allowed at home and in hotels, but it is strictly
forbidden in public. If he ruled in favor of total freedom, the conservatives
would complain. If he ruled in Saudi-style, the 80% foreigners and Tourists
would stay away.

For family reasons, business reasons, tax reasons and weather reasons, I have
some appreciation for UAE. But I absolutely need open internet and will not
accept anything else.

~~~
rayiner
> I instantly want to post a link to Guantanamo as a counter argument.

That's not a counter argument, it's a fallacy:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/And_you_are_lynching_Negroes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/And_you_are_lynching_Negroes).
It's also an argumentative tactic that means that no country can ever be
criticized for what it's doing because the country of the person doing the
criticizing will always be doing _something_ worthy of criticism as well.

It's also intellectually and morally bankrupt to compare a country's treatment
of more than 50% of its population (women + the foreign laborers that
outnumber Emirati citizens) with a country's treatment of a few hundred people
captured on foreign battlefields.

~~~
geff82
Last time I checked, USA was far ahead of the UAE in absolute and relative
numbers of regular executions (and we don't count drone strikes now). My
counter arguments are not to defend the UAE, but to widen the perspective and
trying to tell you to compare the country more to its neighbours. It's a pity,
of course, that democratic traditions and general acceptance of human rights
are not existent in most middle eastern states. Women in UAE enjoy relative
freedom compared to surrounding countries (please pronounce: compared to. Of
course it is not western-democratic style). They can wear the hijab or go to
the beach in very short bikinis, just as they want (or, to be fair, as their
tradition of the family is). In general, I did not feel unfree in the country.

~~~
tptacek
Counterargument: there is no reasonable argument that suggests that civil
rights in the UAE are comparable to those of any country in North America or
Europe --- Europe here probably including Belarus. Among other issues, UAE law
is systemically and profoundly abusive to women.

------
aqme28
Just reading the headline, but isn't the use of a VPN to access a blocked
service a criminal CFAA abuse in the US? Aaron Swartz did basically just that
and was threatened with decades in prison.

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azurelogic
How are any large enterprises expected to do business there then? So many of
them require a VPN to get things done. This is bonkers.

~~~
maxxxxx
It's the perfect kind of law for oppressive governments. Everybody does it. If
you play nice they will ignore it but if you don't play along they immediately
have something against you.

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ajamesm
Easy. Just run your VPN usage through a VPN.

~~~
nathancahill
I'm behind 7 proxies and use ZoneAlarm, Sygate and Comodo Internetnet Securtiy
which I all keep up-to-date. THAT'S THREE FIREWALLS AT THE SAME TIME

~~~
themihai
Well.... if only one of them is hijacked you are busted!

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nartz
this looks like a marketing material for viber

