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Ask Slashdot: Managing Encrypted Android Devices In State and Local Gov't?

Posted by timothy on from the better-to-city-council-corruption dept.

An anonymous reader writes "I am a systems administrator for a mid size state agency. We currently offer Blackberries to our staff, but we are migrating to Android devices in the near future. Since phones have sensative data (email, documents, etc.), what is a good choice for encrypting that data? Options abound, like OS-level encryption from Motorola and Samsung, 3rd party apps from GoTrusted and even a LUKS port for Android. Does anyone have experience managing encrypted Android devices? What are the important features I should be looking at? Many thanks in advance." (And, for that matter, are there good options for doing the same with iPhones? Other options to consider?)

3 of 138 comments (clear)

  1. Re:BlackBerry = Security by snowraver1 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Has anyone here tried blackberry mobile fusion? Is it good?

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  2. Sandbox Application by rogueippacket · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Try something like Good for Enterprise - allow your employees to bring their own devices (this is the trend, don't try to dodge it) if they wish, and just provide them with an activation key for the application. The days of "work device" and "personal device" are over - users will use one device for both, and issuing a crippled device which only performs one of these tasks is quite draconian. The sandboxed application ensures all critical information is secure, while giving your employees the segregation between life and work they desire.

  3. Re:iPhone by stewbacca · · Score: 1, Interesting

    I changed jobs last year. I used to work on government contracts and we weren't even allowed to take thumb drives or laptops out of the building. Wasteful and inefficient for very little security returns (with nothing in place to keep me from just forwarding the stuff to my gmail account, and then working on it from home, something everyone did, btw).

    Now I work in a place that is BYOD. We have NO security problems like the old place. Not because BYOD is more secure, but because when you surround yourself with a security circus, all the IT power-mongers make EVERYTHING a security priority and you get a security circus. Allowing BYOD is the first step for the IT dorks to realize that not everything has to be locked down tight just because it is your job to do so.