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BlackBerry Comments on Canadian Police Eavesdropping Report (blackberry.com)
Last week, a report, citing court documents, claimed that Canadian police have had BlackBerry's global decryption key since 2010. Today BlackBerry CEO John Chen officially commented on the report. In a blog post, Chen reiterated that his company remains committed to doing what is "right for the citizenry," without confirming if the Candian police have the "global encryption key." "I have stated before that we are indeed in a dark place when companies put their reputations above the greater good," Chen wrote, adding that the company's cooperation with the Canadian police resulted in shutting down a criminal organization. He adds: Regarding BlackBerry's assistance, I can reaffirm that we stood by our lawful access principles. Furthermore, at no point was BlackBerry's BES server involved. Our BES continues to be impenetrable -- also without the ability for backdoor access -- and is the most secure mobile platform for managing all mobile devices. That's why we are the gold standard in government and enterprise-grade security. For BlackBerry, there is a balance between doing what's right, such as helping to apprehend criminals, and preventing government abuse of invading citizen's privacy, including when we refused to give Pakistan access to our servers. (Update). We have been able to find this balance even as governments have pressured us to change our ethical grounds. Despite these pressures, our position has been unwavering and our actions are proof we commit to these principles. To recall, Chen criticized Apple last year when the iPhone maker refused to unlock a terrorist's iPhone. At the time, he said, Apple was "putting reputation above the greater good."
Soorry aboot that.
Our BES continues to be impenetrable
If you believe that, you're a sucker.
Right?
"Fuck you if you're a privat customer, all your data are belong to us, and continue to trust us if you're an enterprise customer, we promise we won't fuck you the second we decide it's for the greater good."
BlackBerry has two products. One for businesses and other large organizations called BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) that gives them their own private server with their own secret key and one for everyone else where BlackBerry controls the server and has and apparently shares the key.
Lets them have their cake and eat it too, because they can both cooperate with the courts to help them catch (non-corporate) criminals with not turning off big corporations and governments who care about security.
So this guy is a two-faced asshat...the statement should have read he didn't DENY or 'confirm' not just 'confirm' that the Canadian Police had the keys...all he did was deflect..."o you want to look behind this curtain...quick look over there...look at that silly cat!"...He didn't answer the question asked which should have been a simple 'yes/no' answer...so we get to assume they DID have the keys (not just assume of course but know they did because its in court records saying so)...the guys an asshat pure & simple
All these nice comfy words to lull us into fascism. Obviously they don't believe in privacy, their propaganda piece notwithstanding. Consider them a government agent, and leave it at that. And besides, what do they have to offer anyway?
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
I think it's a good thing of police have keys to decrypt data for when there's reasonable suspicion of criminal activity. I don't see a problem here if Canadian law enforcement had access to decrypt communications. It's a good thing because it's a lot easier to monitor the communications of terrorists dangerous criminals. I fail to see why so many people here are so concerned about the police having access to encrypted private communications when there's reasonable suspicion of criminal activity. It results in a safer society. Many of you must be hiding some serious criminal activity or else you wouldn't be so worried about this. If you don't have anything to hide, you shouldn't be concerned about police being able to access private communications when it's likely that terrorism or dangerous crime is involved.
When leaders start using propaganda like "doing what is right for the citizenry" and "greater good" we should get nervous. A CTV article mentioned that government and corporate clients were exempt from this intrusion. That says it all.
I was pretty sure both the Canadians and European agencies share with the NSA. So basically after any one "Greater Good" (TM) security event, you no longer have any privacy.
Why would anyone have an issue with that?
Who is John Chen? What is BlackBerry? Is that like Bluetooth and blackberry had a love child?
To quote Bill Clinton, I guess it depends heavily on what he means by the phrases "the greater good", "backdoor", "impenetrable, and "doing what's right". It seems his definitions of those terms differ greatly from mine.
BlackBerry has two products. One for businesses and other large organizations called BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) that gives them their own private server with their own secret key and one for everyone else where BlackBerry controls the server and has and apparently shares the key.
Ah, this post seems to have found the weasel-wording that resolves the contradiction between the Canadian government saying that Canadian police have had BlackBerry's global decryption key since 2010, and Blackberry saying: "BES continues to be impenetrable -- also without the ability for backdoor access"
OK. So, the police do have the backdoor to the ordinary Blackberry systems, but they have a separate system BES for businesses, which (they say) isn't backdoored.
I have stated before that we are indeed in a dark place when companies put their reputations above the greater good,
That would be a huge step up from days when companies didn't give a shit about their reputations at all. See companies like United Fruit if you need examples of what evil looks like.
Furthermore I think he's equivocating more than a little bit. "The greater good"? I assume this is code for someone who thinks that we should allow the government to play fast an loose with our civil liberties, never mind the cost or consequences. People who think that there is some middle ground where only the good guys can use back doors in encryption. People who think that cops have a right to be lazy.
Note to self*: Re-watch Hot Fuzz.
* - and the RCMP
I can see these policemen trading these keys around like some kids with $2 baseball cards. The RCMP would hand these over to every spy agency and police force in the world if they got two candies and a pat on the head.
The question isn't why would they? That is obvious. The question is what possibly could have stopped them? How about nothing. They literally would have nothing to lose handing over this access and everything to gain.
Ceo says "I have stated before that we are indeed in a dark place when companies put their reputations above the greater good,"
but then sells a communication suite saying "Our BES continues to be impenetrable -- also without the ability for backdoor access -- and is the most secure mobile platform for managing all mobile devices. That's why we are the gold standard in government and enterprise-grade security."
so in other words, "we are going to sell a product that allows companies to hold them selves and their reputation above the greater good, we just think that the pleebes dont deserve this"
What if the DOJ wants to go after traders that have setup their own BES and wont give up the keys? Black berry cant help law enforcement there apparently..
Note to self*: Re-watch Hot Fuzz.
Whenever I start to feel any sympathy for government overreach to "protect" us, I re-read a scene in E. E. "Doc" Smith's _The Grey Lensman_. The one where the institutionally self-directed and unsupervised nark with the mind-reading spy technology wipes out the nest of dope dealers by calling in the beam-weapon equivalent of a total-annihilation nuclear strike on the city where they're based.
Daren't let even one of them escape, after all. They're corrupting our population's moral fibre.
The reader is expected to cheer.
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
So, if you are a corporate customer you get your privacy, but if you are an ordinary customer you get none - because "the greater good". Got it. Because, as everyone knows, corporations commit no crimes, only private citizens do.
Fuck you, Blackberry.
This is either creepy or incoherent.
John Chen
Merriam-Webster
What could your reputation be, other than the assessment of people as to whether you are acting for the greater good?
We couldn't be prouder.
Love,
The United States of America
Blackberry is owned indirectly by the Chinese Gov.
TFS:
> Chen wrote, adding that the company's cooperation with the Canadian police resulted in shutting down a criminal organization.
And yet the Clinton Foundation is still in operation. Conflicting info, not sure how to resolve.
I was worried that I would have to deal with moral dillemas. Now I am relieved to learn that Blackberry can think for me. Sign me up for more of their products!
Chen is a Warrant Canary
He's basically telling everyone that Blackberry devices have been compromised.
He can't tell us any other way.
This idiot doesn't seem to understand who he is there to serve - the company, which profits from serving the customer... vague notions of 'greater good' by facilitating government tyranny is not his job. Fire him now, and may Blackberry rot in hell for ever hiring him.
Public company, fuckwit.