Windows Mobile Security Software Fails the Test

boebert_ms writes "Windows Mobile security software is insecure and buggy, according to a report from Airscanner. In a paper posted at msmobiles.com, roughly 20 different Windows Mobile programs (e.g. MS Money, Password Master 3.5, etc) were examined and found to have a wide range of issues from broken protection schemes to poor encryption algorithms, and more. The paper goes into some details about each program and their flaws and also provides some tips on how to protect your data."

Comments

tip #1

[User 956]

The paper goes into some details about each program and their flaws and also provides some tips on how to protect your data.

Tip #1: Use a Palm OS device.

Application Problems

[Trevahaha]

Sounds like they are application design problems, not platform problems. How is Palm OS any better? I'm seriously interested, does Palm OS immune to these issues?

Not MSFT Bashing

[Jazzer_Techie]

Those who actually RTFA will find that most of the complaints have nothing to do with Microsoft or Windows Mobile itself. (The exceptions are MS Money and complaints about the lack of a Task Manager / msconfig / regedit etc.) The issue is that vendors are writing 'security' software (password managers, antivirus) using terrible methods. In analyzing these programs, they found passwords stored as plaintext, some ROT-N encrypted, and other very poor methods of 'securely' storing data. OS security matters, but in this case it wouldn't matter if you were running OpenBSD, assuming you had chosen to (and could) run these programs.

Oh Noes!!

[wwiiol_toofless]

Here I was using unsecured wifi at Hong Kong international, you know the one by the shady young-looking guys milling around with stolen laptops? Anyhoo, I was working on an unprotected pocket excel document which I stored in my Shared files folder containing all the Soc. Security numbers of my company's employees while trying to connect to the bluetooth device of this stewardess I had taken a liking to when I happened upon this article. For shame, Microsoft, for shame.