BlackBerry has offered some additional information about the steps it took in making sure that the Priv by BlackBerry was secure, even while running Android. For years, BlackBerry has been known for security, its operating system was built around it. With the switch to Android on the Priv, some were left concerned about how BlackBerry planned to stay true to its roots in making sure that the upcoming smartphone was as secure as the rest.
Here are some of the changes BlackBerry made to make sure the Android-powered Priv was as secure as you'd expect:
- BlackBerry's Hardware Root of Trust, a unique manufacturing process that injects cryptographic keys into the device hardware, providing a secure foundation for the entire platform.
- Verified Boot and Secure Bootchain, which uses the embedded keys to verify every layer of the device from hardware to OS to applications in order to make sure they haven't been tampered with.
- A hardened Linux kernel with numerous patches and configuration changes to improve security.
- FIPS 140-2 compliant full disk encryption on by default to protect your privacy.
- The BlackBerry Infrastructure, a secure distributed global network that transmits petabytes of encrypted data to and from the world's most powerful leaders and professionals.
- BES12, the leading Enterprise Mobility Management platform used by the world's most powerful governments and corporations.
In addition, the Priv integrates with Android for Work, allowing a separation of work and personal data and applications. You can manage and protect your privacy with the built-in BlackBerry DTEK application. DTEK will help you see which personal data is accessed by apps, how secure it is based on password strength, encryption settings and more. BlackBerry will continue to detail features of the Priv in the upcoming weeks.
Source: BlackBerry
