Dubai
Watching geographically-restricted services such as Netflix, Hulu and some others can be difficult as broadcasters are coming under pressure from content copyright owners to block virtual private networks (VPN).
The premium apps look at the IP address to know where the user is browsing from.
However, consumers have found a way to unblock the apps using proxy or virtual private networks which hides users’ identity and geo-location by replacing your real IP address with the new one, so it looks like the content is coming from another IP address that is located somewhere else.
But users with an American or a European subscription can watch any of the streaming services in the UAE with a VPN.
Operating a VPN to access illegal content could be against the law.
Companies are allowed to use VPN to encrypt the lines but for individual users, the UAE’s Telecommunications Regulatory Authority has consistently held that the utilisation of VPNs is against its laws, and now the police have been advised that legitimate moves can be made under Law Number 9 against clients of Virtual Proxy Networks.
Dubai Police has stated that legal action may not be started against anybody for just utilising a VPN service, extra charges can be pressed against an individual if they are caught taking part in illegal online activities.
