Assalamu’alaikum Mufti Sahb,
I have a question and hope that Mufti Sahb is able to provide an answer as soon as possible, insya Allah. It is with regards to the usage of Skype Video but before I pose the question, here is a brief background of the people inquiring it.
They regard ‘ulamaa as those people who are very old fashioned, old in age, unaware of technology and thus unable to understand how technology works most of the time (of course this is not the case, masya Allah, alhamdulillah!). They also cannot comprehend how is it possible for ‘ulamaa to have online Q&A. Their main concern is, how do we know that these ‘ulamaa are authentic? How do we know that it’s the ‘ulamaa themselves that are answering the questions and not some fakes?
The question starts here: There are many people who say that it is permissible to use Skype Video because the image that gets transmitted is not stored anywhere in the cache memory nor is it recorded. Once the session is over, the image is immediately deleted. Based on these facts, they deduce that it is therefore permissible to use Skype Video or other tools similar to Skype Video.
I’d be very grateful if Mufti Sahb could give a clear explanation on this issue and not just by merely stating that using Skype Video is permissible or not, but also to include in the answer why it is so (ie. if permissible, why, which part of the technology permits this usage etc2. and if not permissible, why, which part of the technology does not allow its usage etc2.)
If Mufti Sahb is getting assistance from a person who specializes in the field of technology, then could the person’s credentials be included as well so then the people asking won’t think that Mufti Sahb is just making up the fatwa/answer, insya Allah? Also, I’d be more grateful if Mufti Sahb could ask other people of Mufti Sahb’s calibre (ie. Muftis from other countries) to attempt this query, insya Allh.
I make doa that this is not too much to ask for, insya Allah and I’ll be really grateful if this question can be answered as soon as possible so then these people won’t think that the ‘ulamaa do not care about people’s queries and regard their queries as insignificant.
Jazakallahu khaira.
Wassalam.
-Umm ‘Ali
