Over the past few months, virtual private network providers (VPN) and the Indian government have been tussling over the new information technology rules that were set by the Ministry of Information Technology. Due to this, ExpressVPN, one of the largest VPN service providers in the world has shut their Indian servers indefinitely.
According to the new rules of regulations, VPN service providers will have store their customer’s data and other information such as their internet protocol address for at least 5 years which every provider has been against. ExpressVPN said that this is not the reason VPNs are made. They are made to provide safety, privacy, and security to their users and this does the opposite and violate the sole reason of their use.
But ExpressVPN’s reasons for removing their Indian servers go deeper than just this law. They said that the company and their service have been made in such a way that the company cannot keep and store data. As the way the entire company has been built and functions goes against India’s new data laws, they decided to remove their servers based in the country.
Many other VPN service providers have shown their concern and have tried communicating to the Indian government about their grievances concerning this law but they have stayed strong on their stance stating that companies can leave the country if they are unhappy with the law.
The Information Technology Industry Council which is an American organisation has also approached the Indian government criticising the law but the government along with the Ministry of Indian Technology seem like they will not be budging from their stance.
Surfshark, which is another VPN service provider which is based in the Netherlands are currently figuring out and evaluating if they can legally challenge the Indian government and get this law changed.
With over one billion people in the country, India is a very lucrative market for anyone looking to start their business here. Therefore, even if the Indian government sets difficult or harsh rules and regulations to a specific industry, the businesses will either comply to them or will figure out a way to circumvent the laws or will try to find a way to reason with the government.
However, these new laws literally go against the very reasons VPN’s and their service providers came into existence and if the companies oblige, there will no point in using their services.
