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Smartphone Security

Not all Smartphones are Equally Secure


 

Get Proven Security with BlackBerry

There are phones that say they are secure and then there are phones that live and breathe security. Phones with BlackBerry® software or apps don’t just tack on security, it’s built-in. BlackBerry is trusted by thousands of companies and governments around the world to securely enable business on mobile.

Security Built-in From the Start

With BlackBerry, you can be confident that extra precautions are taken at both the hardware and software levels to protect your BlackBerry smartphone from malicious tampering.

Secure Stack Device

Foundational Security

Security starts with the manufacturing process, and stays with your smartphone from that point forward. When you boot up, each component of hardware and software is validated to ensure your device hasn’t been tampered with. Then your device is continuously monitored for events or changes that indicate a compromise to device security.

Hardware Root of Trust: A secure manufacturing process establishes a hardware root of trust that injects cryptographic security keys to the processor.

Secure Boot Process: When you boot up, each component of hardware and software is validated to ensure your device has not been tampered with.

Downgrade Prevention: Your smartphone is protected against loading an OS version that doesn’t have the latest security fixes or a malicious user exploiting a vulnerability in an older OS version.

BlackBerry Integrity Detection (BID): Your device is continuously monitored for events or configuration changes that indicate a compromise to device security. Real-time actions are triggered if a threat is detected.

 

OS Security

BlackBerry locks down capabilities in the Android OS that could give attackers the opportunity to compromise your device. The software provides a secure environment that makes it difficult for attackers to find vulnerabilities or perform attacks. And downgrade prevention protects you against loading an OS version that doesn’t have the latest security fixes.

Android OS Hardening: BlackBerry locks down capabilities that could give attackers the opportunity to compromise your device.

BlackBerry Secure Compound: A trusted execution environment guarantees the protection of sensitive data and security-focused apps running inside it.

Enhanced Memory: Address space layout randomization is a technique that randomizes the location of system components in memory, making it more difficult for an attacker to know where a vulnerability exists, or perform an attack that involves predicting target addresses. BlackBerry software reinforces this technique for both system and non-system applications.

Protection for Your Data

BlackBerry adds extra protection to Wi-Fi®, VPN, Bluetooth and NFC to protect data in transit across your entire network, and offers the added option to digitally sign and encrypt messages you send with S/MIME. Should your phone be lost or stolen, full-disk encryption protects your private information. And for everyday protection, you can choose from a numeric, alphanumeric or picture password.

Military grade Encryption: FIPS 140-2 Compliant Full-Disk Encryption protects your private information from being stolen if you were to lose your phone.

Data in Transit Protection: BlackBerry adds extra protection to Wi-Fi®, VPN, Bluetooth and NFC to protect data in transit across your entire network.

Secure Password Generation and Credential Storage is handled by the BlackBerry Secure Compound, to enhance the protection of your sensitive credentials.

Data Wipe Options and Controls: To protect your organization's data and user information, a user can delete their device data, including data on the media card. If your devices are managed by an EMM solution, an administrator can wipe device data.

Picture Password1: In addition to a numeric or alphanumeric password, users can set a picture password as a convenient secondary way to unlock their device. The user chooses a picture, a number, and a location in the picture. To unlock their device, the user drags a grid of randomly arranged numbers until an example of their chosen number aligns with their secret location in the picture.

Media card protection: Access to media card data is protected based on the primary user profile. Users can also choose to use the SD card as an extension of the device, which will format and encrypt the media card.

S/MIME: S/MIME adds another level of security to email messages by allowing a user to digitally sign and encrypt email messages they send from their device.

"No device should be able to boot and load its OS without first determining with certainty that the OS is authentic and not somehow modified…Not all available chips powering current devices have the ability to enable security hardware assist and thereby secure booting to verify that the OS has not been tampered with."

J. Gold & Associates

Ongoing Security Delivers Protection Over the Long-Haul

Security isn’t static. It requires commitment to ongoing security updates.

Device Vault Image

Best-in-Class Security Patch Track Record

Many smartphones put the user’s private information at risk of being hacked due to slow security updates. BlackBerry has a record of being the quickest to deliver security patches. Other mobile device vendors can take weeks or months to deliver security patches, leaving you vulnerable and at risk.

Dedicated Security Research & Response Teams

Providing world class security continues to be a significant area of focus, commitment and investment for BlackBerry, with large teams dedicated to driving security leadership.

"The lack of quickly implementing updates to the latest version of the OS is often a key factor in enabling known exploits…Some manufacturers can take 60-180 days to upgrade to a new OS version after Google has made it available…This is a major security issue."

J. Gold & Associates

Control and Visibility Over Your Security

Security can seem complicated, but BlackBerry smartphone software makes it simple.

DTEK by BlackBerry

The DTEK™ by BlackBerry app will automatically monitor your OS and apps and let you know when your privacy could be at risk and how you can take action to improve it.

  • See the overall security rating for your device – excellent, fair or poor – and what you can do to improve it.
  • Get notified when someone is taking pictures or videos without your knowledge, turning your microphone on, sending a text message, or accessing your contacts or location.
DTEK Screenshot

Securely Enable Business on Mobile

Only BlackBerry offers a comprehensive, mobile-native approach to security that addresses the entire enterprise, from endpoint to endpoint. Being BlackBerry Secure means integrated solutions informed by deep mobile security expertise and experience, continuous technical innovation, industry partnerships and academic collaborations, on-demand cybersecurity services, and a point of view that recognizes vulnerability wherever it lies.

Encryption and certificates

  • FIPS Compliant Cryptographic Engine for Enterprise Apps provides your enterprise with secure military grade encryption for your work applications.
  • Wi-Fi Management lets you easily deploy and manage Wi-Fi or network profiles exclusive for users’ work applications. 
  • Password and Certificate Management with expanded certificate lookup and status verification, enables users and admins to better manage passwords and certificates for authentication.
  • Control Over Certificates in the Work Trusted Store.
  • The ability to configure Single Sign-on for Chrome in a managed profile.

Security Controls for Enterprise Admins

  • Enrollment Options let you manage your deployed BlackBerry devices via native administration policies, EAS policies (when using BlackBerry Hub+ Inbox), container solution, or Android enterprise activation types.
  • Enhanced Management Controls through inclusion of additional management capabilities for Android in the enterprise, give device administrators even greater control over their enterprise data.
  • VPN Support for several native and third-party VPN solutions for connecting to networks means that when VPN is used on multiuser devices, each user can route their network traffic through a VPN without affecting other users on the device.