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Android Approved By Pentagon

Posted by samzenpus on from the getting-the-greenlight dept.

sfcrazy writes "The Pentagon has approved a version of Android running on Dell hardware to be used by DoD officials, along with the BlackBerry. The approval of Android by the DoD is a major setback for Apple's iPhone. This doesn't mean that DoD employees can use any Android phone. The Pentagon has approved only Dell's hardware running Android 2.2. Interestingly Dell recently discontinued its Streak phone which runs Android 2.2. Dell is now offering Dell Venue which runs on Android 2.2. So, this is the phone which DoD employees can use."

20 of 160 comments (clear)

  1. No goodies for the DoD by wbr1 · · Score: 2

    I guess they won't be getting Ice Cream Sandwich without rooting either.

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    1. Re:No goodies for the DoD by gcnaddict · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Right, because rooting a phone you plan on using for handling sensitive compartmented information is such a good idea.

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    2. Re:No goodies for the DoD by Threni · · Score: 2

      Who cares? 2.3 is all you need. Seems like nothing but small, unimportant updates for ages now. No point in getting ICS for the sake of it, just like there was (is, in a lot of cases) no point in corporate windows users upgrading from XP to Vista or 7.

    3. Re:No goodies for the DoD by Hadlock · · Score: 4, Interesting

      After 4 days with ICS on my Nexus S, I am seriously considering downgrading. The only end-user changes are almost completely cosmetic, and app/widget support for ICS is poor at best for many things I use on a daily basis.

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  2. Given the DoD's ongoing love affair with Windows by Daniel+Dvorkin · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ... I have a hard time believing the open-source-ness of Android played any real part in the decision, no matter what TFA says. Someone at Dell made the right deal with the right people at the Pentagon.

    --
    The correlation between ignorance of statistics and using "correlation is not causation" as an argument is close to 1.
  3. iOS Devices Already In Use by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

    Actually, DOD employees have been allowed to use iOS devices since November with approval of their CIOs, and the same 'blanket' approval which Android 2.2 just received is forthcoming. So much FUD....

    1. Re:iOS Devices Already In Use by girlintraining · · Score: 3, Funny

      Wanna play a game of thermonuclear warfare? There's an app for that.

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  4. Misleading headline; Why? by bogaboga · · Score: 4, Interesting

    This doesn't mean that DoD employees can use any Android phone. The Pentagon has approved only Dell's hardware running Android 2.2.

    How about a headline that goes:

    Dell scores one with Android

    More accurate, right?

    1. Re:Misleading headline; Why? by aplusjimages · · Score: 3, Funny

      I was thinking:
      Uncle Sam Hates Steve Jobs
      That'll get more reads

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  5. Carrier IQ by farnsworth · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I've always wondered how the military et al cope with things like Carrier IQ. Do they get special builds of iOS and Android that exclude it? How do they keep top secret data from leaking out to third parties?

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    There aint no pancake so thin it doesn't have two sides.

    1. Re:Carrier IQ by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      They're the ones writing things like Carrier IQ.

    2. Re:Carrier IQ by viperidaenz · · Score: 4, Informative

      Its my understanding you don't need a "special build" of Android to not get Carrier IQ. You need a "special build" to get it - like those created by/for the carriers

    3. Re:Carrier IQ by Baloroth · · Score: 2

      How do they keep top secret data from leaking out to third parties?

      First of all, you don't put top secret stuff on your phone. That is a quick way to lose your security clearance. There are very strict rules about what top secret data can and cannot be placed on: putting it on public-internet facing devices like a phone will get you in shitloads of trouble. It's possible they have Android builds that work on SIPRNET (I've heard the President gets something like that from Blackberry) with a physical switch (SIPRNET devices have to be physically separate in some way from ARPANET devices), but this doesn't sound at all similar. So classified information should never be on these devices to be leaked.

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  6. iOS approved already by Dupple · · Score: 5, Informative

    http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/steelcloud-announces-new-dod-platforms-for-securing-good-technology-and-apple-ios-128885828.html ASHBURN, Va., Sept. 1, 2011 /PRNewswire/ ---- SteelCloud, Inc. (OTCQB: SCLD.PK), a leading developer of mobility appliance and VMware® solutions today announced the release of MobileWorks, its newest mobile appliance developed for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). In conjunction with the recent approval of the use of Apple® iOS devices within the DoD, SteelCloud is pleased to offer the immediate availability of MobileWorks DE for the STIG and security configuration guidance compliant platform deployment of the Good For Government mobile security suite.

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    1. Re:iOS approved already by jellomizer · · Score: 2

      A fanboy will defend his product on all levels and be quite joyous for any victory it obtains as a major victory. A hater will find any flaw and use it why the product sucks, and any setback they will quit joyous as it will seem like a major victory.

      Using a chess analogy. Apple just lost a pawn. They knew it will happen. But in the mean time apple has Horton market share and mind share (where all other devices will need to be compared with apples)

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  7. Re:Uhhh ... iOS is ALREADY in use by the DoD by Locutus · · Score: 2

    and they just lost that exclusivity. The article was rather down on iOS but I got that this means Android got the nod going forward.

    The competition is good for everyone as long as one player isn't dominating and controlling. So, it's really not a big deal for Apple and it may cause some benefits should Apple want back into that game.

    LoB

    --
    "Anyone who stands out in the middle of a road looks like roadkill to me." --Linus
  8. Also Windows is just as open to them by Sycraft-fu · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The idea that Windows' source code is some massive secret is rather funny. It is closed source, but it is no secret. Not only do governments have it (which they require if it is to be used for anything classified) but universities do too. MS licenses it to various universities with some conditions. Students can see it and mess with it, but not copy it and that kind of thing.

    Any OS the DoD is going to use, they'll have the code for. So to them Windows and Android are no different in that regard.

  9. Re:Why Doesn't the DoD Roll their Own? by houstonbofh · · Score: 2

    The DOD does not build anything. They pay contractors to do that.

  10. Re:Why Doesn't the DoD Roll their Own? by cavreader · · Score: 2

    What's wrong with that? The government is limited on how much they can spend on individuals. However, the expense of using highly expensive 3rd part non-governmental companies does not violate the government pay scale. The military is a prime example. Their reliance on advanced technology forces them to use non-governmental and non-military resources to develop. implement, and operate their systems.

  11. DOD did not APRROVE by fluffy99 · · Score: 2

    The reality is that DOD has issued a Secure Technical Implementation Guide (STIG) that must be followed if you are trying to get a Designated Approving Authority (DAA) to issue an Approval To Operate (ATO). Actually implementing a secure architecture and getting approval for sensitive unclass, much less classified is a whole different issue.

    I guarantee that approval means the user will not have Android market access and will not be able to arbitrarily install applications. Depending on the setup, an approved android phone may very well have less capability than a Blackberry.