PDA Security, the Next Big Hurdle for IT?

Jack writes "ITO published an article on a new secure PDA requested by the NSA. 'General Dynamics inked an $18 million contract with the secretive National Security Agency to design and develop a secure mobile personal assistant for defense workers. The PDA will integrate all types of communications including voice, data and web.'" In related news palmtops writes "Insecure Magazine has a great and in-depth article written by Seth Fogie, the VP of Airscanner.com, about Pocket PC security. His summary of PDA attacks states: 'These devices are easy to smuggle into a business and can be used to propagate an attack against network devices. Don't make the mistake of assuming is a PDA is a simple data keeper. As the cliche' goes... it is how you use it that matters.'"

Comments

Links

[Mr_Silver]

Insecure Magazine has a great and in-depth article written by Seth Fogie, the VP of Airscanner.com, about Pocket PC security.

It might be a little late mentioning this but the link in this snippet actually points to a 9.1 meg PDF file.

In the future it would be nice if submitters (and especially editors) actually describe the target of a link when it doesn't go to a good old fashioned HTML or XHTML page of content.

Because it's necessary...

[pointbeing]

Why even try to make a PDA secure?

I work for an agency under DoD as ADP R&D Program Manager. I think you'd be amazed at how many people are hollering for connected PDAs - and for the ones who have a real need we usually give them Blackberrys but you can't connect a Blackberry to a trusted network ;-)

Granted, most of these connected PDAs will end up in a desk drawer as soon as the user finds out how unpleasant it can be to send and receive email with a PDA, but they still want the things - and most of the people who want them outrank me. IF the boss wants executive jewelry I guess it's my job to get it for him.

Common access card compatibility will be a good thing - except the resulting PDA will probably be about the size and weight of your average brick. Right now we've got more than enough challenges with PDAs as DoD requires FIPS 140-2 encryption, a firewall feature set and a virus scanner on connected PDAs.

I did send TFA to our local IA department just because I like to watch their heads spin around every once in awhile, though - the last time I did that I sent them a brochure on an NSA-approved 802.11 solution for access to *classified* computer networks.

I love my job ;-)

Re:Links [OT]

[lxdbxr]

If using Firefox, try this in your [profile]/chrome/userContent.css: /* indicate PDF links */ a[href$=".pdf"]:after { font-size: smaller; content: "pdf"; } Think I got that from another Slashdot post, can't seem to find it now though (thanks anyway, whoever posted it!)

Openbsd

[ErisCalmsme]

http://openbsd.org/zaurus.html

Nuff Said.