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Open Kernel Labs Blog
November 02, 2010
Secure Smartphones, Off-the-Shelf, and In Your Pocket
In Washington D.C., in state capitals and city halls, and also in corporate boardrooms, organizations face a common dilemma: in a time of economic crisis and financial austerity, how can they deploy secure communications without busting brittle budgets?
They already have part of the answer. Starting in the 1990s, governments embarked on a range of “COTS” initiatives to leverage lower-cost Commercial Off-The-Shelf systems in place of custom-built legacy implementations.
Mass-market smartphones are the very soul of COTS – readily-available, reasonably priced, and feature rich. But can COTS smartphones provide the same security assurances as purpose-built hardware and software?
Leveraging COTS Smartphones with SecureIT Mobile
Off-the-shelf only works when you have something “on the shelf”. The reality is that today’s smartphones don’t by themselves meet government and industry requirements for secure communications. That’s why OK Labs introduced SecureIT Mobile, to enable OEMs, integrators, and government contractors to build on existing handset designs, hardware, and software to deliver the next “Obamaberry” or “Jack Bauer” phone for little more than the cost of regular smartphone. And building on COTS handsets allows the IT supply chain deliver secure communications to market much faster than purpose-built devices.
Secure the Device, Secure the Platform, and Secure the Ecosystem
The mandate that drives SecureIT Mobile is Secure the Device. OK Labs response, with mobile virtualization, has been to Secure the Platform.
With SecureIT Mobile we go one step further by also working to Secure the Ecosystem. Building secure versions of off-the-shelf smartphones involves bringing together best-in-class technologies in a single device. That’s why we partner with companies like McAfee, Sirrix, Citrix, and others to meet the mobile security challenge, to secure the ecosystem, end-to-end.
Coming to an IT Department Near You
SecureIT Mobile brings secure mobile communications out of the lab (or the special effects shop) and into your agency or company IT department. Government workers and regular business people – police, firemen, public safety workers, outside sale and field techs, and secret agents too – no longer have to choose between security and a modern mobile user experience.
With SecureIT mobile, they can carry a single secure device that lets them call HQ, exchange G2 and play Sudoku, all with out breaking a sweat.
Posted by Steve Subar on November 02 at 02:53 AM
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About Steve Subar:
Steve Subar, CEO and President of OK Labs, has been an honored leader in the technology industry for 20 plus years and has received several accolades for his work. Steve is an avid runner who can also be found communing with his surfboard in Bondi Beach, Australia; skiing the slopes of Beaver Creek, Colorado; or searching for the perfect Pinot Noir all over the world.