The worlds first smartphone designed with security in mind was released in June this year. The maker, SGP Technologies, states the phone is "Secure by design". As a smartphone it has all the same basic features any user would expect, 3G GPS, Bluetooth, Wifi 802.11 b/g/n, a camera and lots of sensors. But where it really sets itself apart from the rest of the market is the security features.
At the heart of the phone is the modified Android version 4.4 called PrivateOS. Unlike the standard Android, all Google services are removed and standard applications like email, browser and cloud storage are generic (not Gmail, Chrome or Dropbox) so they don't have services gathering data on the user. Other security features have been added such as encryption and a VPN client as well as a suite of security apps from Silent Circle, creator of Android and Apple security apps such as Silent Phone, Silent Text and Silent Contacts. These apps encrypt the stored data and transmit securely. Other features are remote wipe and full disk encryption.
The best feature is the Security Center. After installing any new applications, the services that you have to allow to set them up can be disabled individually. For example for a mapping application you can disable access to your address book and phone ID, but keep location services running.
The cost of all this security is that the phone doesn't come with an App Store. This is because the app stores themselves are insecure. Installing any additional apps will make the phone less secure.One other problem is that the phone doesn't have any malware protection installed.
All in all, it's great to have a secure Android smartphone on the market. The benefit of security comes at the cost of convenience that all those insecure apps bring. Maybe we will be able to keep our privacy and still enjoy the convenience of always being connected someday. We just got closer!
Malenkovich, S. (2014, October 22). Blackphone review: is a secure smartphone possible? [Weblog post]. Retrieved from Kapersky Lab Daily Blog website: http://blog.kaspersky.com/blackphone-review/
SGP Technologies. (2014). Blackphone. https://www.blackphone.ch/
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