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BlackBerry's Latest Experiment: a $2,300 'Secure' Tablet
An anonymous reader writes: After missing the boat on smartphones, BlackBerry has been throwing everything they can at the wall to see what sticks. From making square phones to insisting users want physical keyboards, their only standard is how non-standard they've become. Now they're expanding this strategy to the tablet market with a security-centric tablet that costs $2,300. And they're not doing it alone — the base device is actually a Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5. The tablet runs Samsung Knox boot tech, as well as software from IBM and encryption specialist Secusmart (which BlackBerry recently purchased). The device will be targeted at businesses and organizations who have particular need for secure devices.
"Organizations deploying the SecuTablet will be able to set policies controlling what apps can run on the devices, and whether those apps must be wrapped, said IBM Germany spokesman Stefan Hefter. The wrapping process—in which an app is downloaded from a public app store, bundled with additional libraries that encrypt its network traffic and intercept Android 'intents' for actions such as cutting or pasting data, then uploaded to a private app store—ensures that corporate data can be protected at rest, in motion and in use, he said. For instance, it can prevent data from a secure email being copied and pasted into the Facebook app running on the same device—yet allow it to be pasted into a secure collaboration environment, or any other app forming part of the same 'federation,' he said."
"Organizations deploying the SecuTablet will be able to set policies controlling what apps can run on the devices, and whether those apps must be wrapped, said IBM Germany spokesman Stefan Hefter. The wrapping process—in which an app is downloaded from a public app store, bundled with additional libraries that encrypt its network traffic and intercept Android 'intents' for actions such as cutting or pasting data, then uploaded to a private app store—ensures that corporate data can be protected at rest, in motion and in use, he said. For instance, it can prevent data from a secure email being copied and pasted into the Facebook app running on the same device—yet allow it to be pasted into a secure collaboration environment, or any other app forming part of the same 'federation,' he said."
OK. I have not yet read the entire article, but one ques4tion xomwea immediately to mind.
Is it still secure after you root it?
I don't think many politicians would bother to use anything this secure as their records would be kept and likely accessible after a court order. Congress doesn't believe it needs to work this hard. They are above the law, exempt really, in many ways. Businesses with valuable trade secrets are a great target market for this technology.
Virtual keyboards our the fracture!
Mod me down, my New Earth Global Warmingist friends!
I don't think many politicians would bother to use anything this secure as their records would be kept and likely accessible after a court order.
You're selling it all wrong. Better records retention for a politician? Pa-lease, that's like trying to sell a greenie an SUV because it gets great gas mileage. Let me show you how it's done, from TFS: "For instance, it can prevent data from a secure email being copied and pasted into the Facebook app running on the same device—yet allow it to be pasted into a secure collaboration environment, or any other app forming part of the same 'federation,' he said."
Sales pitch: "You see Congressman, the enhanced security framework prevents you from accidentally tweeting pictures of your junk that you were trying to send to a private audience. The iPad can't do that. Neither can your Android phone."
I want peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing.
not only that : there surely is a way to put a keyboard on a tablet. And not a separate keyboard, or a keyboard that turns it into a baby laptop, but a keyboard on the tablet itself.
They're called laptops.
Tic-Tac-Toe, Global Thermonuclear War, and relationships all have the same winning move.
Until April fools. Seriously, is this a joke? Maybe if they have a juicy gov't contract that'll buy these up. Other than that every company is just going to buy a Windows tablet for a $1000 and put their own security software (which is already certified and tested up the wazoo) on it.
Hi! I make Firefox Plug-ins. Check 'em out @ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-mp3-podcaster/
Blackberry: Filling a niche that doesnt exist since 2005!
I wish I had a good sig, but all the good ones are copyrighted
Protected From iPhone Camera shots? Come on.
But I'm not sure the implementation is sound.
However that's all moot - the price point makes this a non-starter. Companies might be willing to pay a few hundred extra for a secure tablet - but not almost two grand.
#DeleteChrome
...already does this. No need for a $2300 tablet, grab an off-the-shelf iPad/iPhone/Android/Windows Phone, install AirWatch, push the required packages and secure as needed/required from the management console. All corporate data is held in a secure container by the software. Remote management? Done. Remote wipe? Done. Remote password reset? Done. Need to locate the device? Done. Need to see what other software is installed on the device? Done.
Too little, too late.
45 5F E1 04 22 CA 29 C4 93 3F 95 05 2B 79 2A B2
I get that Blackberry has been an industry joke for 6-7 years now, but the opening statement overstates their missteps. Blackberry missed many boats, but not the whole category of smartphones. Touchscreens, app stores, decent browsers...yes. But not smartphones.
So you have arbitrarily decided your definition of a portable device is what fits into your definition of the size of a pocket. This tablet is less than 25% larger than your arbitrarily decided maximum pocket size. While we are at it, your arbitrarily decided maximum pocket size is rather huge. I am guessing you have decided on a particular manufacture that only has up to 8 inch tablets and are trying to justify it.
If you are not allowed to question your government then the government has answered your question.
Look, if you want to capture data that badly just video capture the screen from a secondary device (smartphone). Even a child could do this. Renders your really expensive security software completely useless instantaneously.
You slit your own throat when you gave up the keys to encryption and servers to governments.
Want to be relevant again? make secure smartphones that you CANT give government access to or touch the encrypted signals. Build in voice and data encryption that the users can specify the keys, give the phones self wipe and data destruction abilities.
Make them also alert the user to possible intrusion attempts like Cell tower fakes and other attacks.
Problem is your management is too chicken shit to do it. Just like how you bent over and spread your cheeks to gave the worlds governments unfettered access to your servers so they can intercept all communication between users.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
Please stop trying to make sense on the Internet.
People's expectations for low prices are completely unreasonable nowadays. It hasn't been all that long since $2000 was the "normal" price for a decent machine, never mind a portable device. I realize prices have come down a lot, but realistically Blackberry is only a bit more than doubling the price for this custom-configured device compared to the base hardware. That's far from unreasonable in the "preconfigured stack" systems market.
Don't forget, the point of such devices and systems is to have a single supplier you can pin for resolving any issues or problems. You're buying the vendor's services and reputation, not a collection of unconfigured components.
I do not fail; I succeed at finding out what does not work.
So you have arbitrarily decided your definition of a portable device is what fits into your definition of the size of a pocket.
Many, many years ago when Apple built its first "portable" computer, they used the definition "a device that can be carried by an average ten year old girl for one mile". ( I assume they meant "can be carried" and not "can be carried without complaining").
Hopefully it comes in pink to match my $17,000 Applw Edition watch.
Oh I also hope it lasts for two years like my watch to match my device upgrade cycle.
If you remove the blackberry android references it sounds like they are describing a windows tablet, complete with Bitlocker, applocker, MS store and hooked up to active directory. Is android really that far behind in security and flexibility that this requires a such an expensive service?
You know, after I tried it, my next phone will be a Blackberry classic. The difference is I work with the thing, for gaming I have a real PC.
Most ACs are not even worth the keystrokes to insult them. Be generically insulted by this and ignored otherwise.
And in other news, that approach would be called "innovative", "inventive", and "forward looking".
Most ACs are not even worth the keystrokes to insult them. Be generically insulted by this and ignored otherwise.
lol Blackberry... no US tech (software or hardware) is considered secure in the rest of the world. OMG please wake up...
Blackberry isn't US, and never has been. It's head office is still in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada :-)
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
it's unreasonable, they'll make their money on subscriptions so there is no need to charge an extra for their software.
I would love to see a 10 year old girl trying to carry the Macintosh Luggable for one mile. The damn thing weighed 16 pounds. Also, who would entrust their 10 year old girl with a $6500 (in 1989) slab of technology to carry for a mile?
Slashdot still doesnâ(TM)t support Unicode after it was added to the HTML standard in 1997.
Especially if BlackBerry's treatment of this Samsung device doesn't remove the backdoors in the baseband firmware...
Slashdot still doesnâ(TM)t support Unicode after it was added to the HTML standard in 1997.
Until a few months ago, I carried a Blackberry for work a physical keyboard. The keyboard was nice and I miss it.
-Dave
I was given a Nexas 4 Android. I am not a cellphone devotee, I use it for phone calls received. I hardly ever make outgoing calls and because my fingers are large, texting is folly. My text stuff, when I do it, is full of errors, even to where I select the word that the software anticipates I want to write. If I am sitting in the car while the wife shops, I play freecell. I have a 6 gig data plan and use about 50megs a month. (Yes, a waste).
With a physical keypad, there is a space between the keytops, and there is tactile feedback, and I can type with many fewer errors. I don't need voice response. Occasionally I will use the cell as a gps to guide me to an address. I own a wristwatch, so I do not need or use the cellphone to tell time.
I turn it off at meal times, or when I am in public (theatre, restaurent) places.
A cellphone is great for teens and pre-teens. Leave me to a phone with tactile feedback.
Leslie Satenstein Montreal Quebec Canada
My TV would probably cost $40,000 a decade ago. My iPhone would be a $30,000 workstation in the 90s. The NAS in my living room is $900,000 worth of storage in 1998 dollars. To your contrary, I think people have a perfectly reasonable expectation of low and dropping prices.
Dewey, what part of this looks like authorities should be involved?
Security isn't really a technological question anymore. It is a legal and political one. Unless your enterprise and blackberry is immune to political interference as well it isn't really all that secure. Perhaps, "more secure" from some bum to picks up your tablet from the train seat or something.
Blackberry being located in Canada is a pretty good plus, as privacy laws are pretty good. However even Canada has gotten dinged about participation with the whole US electronic surveillance thing. Blackberry had a story a few years ago where India require them to "unsecure" their service and hand them the keys.
If they make it truly secure, they might be really limiting the market they will be allowed to sell it or operate in...