According to reports, the Egyptian government has blocked US-based social network Facebook’s Free Basics service due to privacy issues.

Free Basics, which is part of Facebook’s Internet.org initiative, was aimed at reaching access to basic Internet service to the under-served areas in the developing countries of the world. The Facebook Free Basics service was launched in Egypt, and some other developing countries, in October 2015.

The service -- under which people from low-income groups in 37 countries were given smartphones for accessing basic Internet services -- was suspended by the Egyptian authorities on December 30, 2015.

Though the exact reason behind the suspension of the Free Basics service in Egypt in December is not known, the authorities said that the service was being blocked in the country because its partner mobile carrier, Eltisalat, had been given permission to offer the service only for two months.

Meanwhile, according to a Reuters report, a spokesperson for the Egyptian Ministry of Communication has revealed that the ban of Free Basics service in the country is apparently a result of the fact that it causes harm to local companies because of its free basic Internet services.

However, it is speculated that the Egyptian government suspended Free Basic service because Facebook reportedly refused to carry out surveillance on behalf of the government. The company seemingly declined the government’s request for a mechanism for monitoring the Internet without the knowledge of the users.