If you own a BlackBerry, it is time for you to give the perfect send-off to your phone because BlackBerry will officially stop working from today. The phones that made Qwerty Keypad popular will no longer function. You can treat the phone as an antique piece from today onwards but don’t expect to make calls or send SMSes from your BlackBerry phone to your friends.

Blackberry noted in a blog post that the legacy services for BlackBerry phones will stop working from January i.e today. The company said that the legacy services for BlackBerry 7.1 OS and earlier, BlackBerry 10 software, BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.1 and earlier versions, will no longer be available after January 4, 2022. The devices running these legacy services and software through either carrier or Wi-Fi connections will no longer function, including for data, phone calls, SMS and emergency numbers.

However, the BlackBerry phones running on Android OS will continue to function. “BlackBerry Android devices will not be impacted by the EOL of infrastructure services unless they are receiving redirected email sent to a BlackBerry hosted email address, or assigned an Enhanced Sim Based License (ESBL) or Identity Based License (IBL). Prior to the EOL date, users of BlackBerry hosted email addresses or using email redirection for these addresses, will need to move to a new email address. If any iOS or Android device, including BlackBerry Android devices, have an ESBL or IBL license assigned, the customer will need to obtain a standard license to cover their use of BlackBerry Enterprise services with that device,” the blog states

In a blog published in September 2020, BlackBerry Executive Chairman and CEO John Chen announced that the company has transitioned to a software company. The blog mentions that the terminations of the services will also impact the BlackBerry hosted email addresses including the BlackBerry Link, BlackBerry Desktop Manager, BlackBerry Blend, BlackBerry Protect.

If you are worrying about the data stored in your BlackBerry phone, the company has said that the company only retains personal information as long as necessary for the fulfilment of BlackBerry’s identified purposes. When the information is no longer necessary or relevant, BlackBerry will delete, destroy, erase, or anonymize the user’s data. You can also send an immediate request to the company to delete the data at privacyoffice@blackberry.com.