Security Concerns Raised Over The 8820

Just a day after posting about the Blackberry 8820, security issues have already been raised, prompting RIM to respond accordingly. As always, the point of concern is Wi-Fi, whose convenience can also be its weakness. Excerpts:

Upon the product release, analysts raised security concerns around the use of Wi-Fi for business, saying Wi-Fi security fears reduced this channel to harmless Web surfing, albeit at a higher throughput.
Jon Arnold, principal of Toronto, Ont.-based J. Arnold & Associates, acknowledged the security fears that enterprises would have with public, unlicensed spectrums, like Wi-Fi hotspots. "There's more vulnerability there," he said.

RIM's Kevin Oerton said "it should make no difference security-wise whether a user is accessing BlackBerry services from home, a hotspot or within the enterprise."

He said the BlackBerry Enterprise Server, a wireless platform which acts as the conduit through which all RIM enterprise services are delivered to mobile devices "offers security from the device all the way into the BlackBerry Enterprise Server."
In addition, Oerton said the company employs 256-bit AES encryption so transmission and data can't be read.

Similar concerns were raised during the first two weeks of the iPhone's release. Following that train of thought brings us to this conclusion: security is always going to be an issue for any Wi-Fi-capable mobile device. It's going to be a challenge, especially if the gadgets are marketed for corporate use.

Source: CW

( Add your comments )

Recent Entries:
· Bell, Rogers Announce Canadian Launch of Samsung Wave
· Bell, Telus now offering iPhones
· Fox introduces FoxPop mobile phone app to enhance DVD viewing

[ READER COMMENTS ]

Security Concerns Raised Over The 8820

Add your comments...

We kindly ask that you keep your comments relevant to this blog entry. Abusive or inappropriate comments or comments that are specifically promotional in nature may be removed.