Google and Skype could be hit by India data curbs

An Indian Home Ministry official told the BBC that "any company with a telecoms network should be accessible".

"It could be Google or Skype, but anyone operating in India will have to provide data," he said.

The move follows high-profile talks with Blackberry maker Research in Motion about ways to allow Indian security forces to monitor data.

The government is also likely to target virtual private networks, which give secure access to company networks for employees working away from their offices.

The tightening of the rules is likely to affect Google, which uses powerful encryption in its Gmail service, and internet telecom service Skype.

"Skype has a similar issue to Blackberry, in so far as it uses a proprietary protocol and no-one knows what is under the hood," said Mr Casper.

A Google spokesman told the BBC it had not yet received any communication from the government.

RIM has been given 60 days to come up with a way to open up its data to Indian law enforcement authorities; Kazinform cites BBC.

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