Blackberry OS 7 is *ridiculously* secure - Does anyone care?
Theres a new Trend Micro (the security folks) study out (which I can't get my hands on. Sigh.) which sez. that the BB 7 OS has "corporate grade security and manageability".
Which, I believe, is just about enough to get you a cup of coffee, if you happen to have an extra $3.50 lying around that is.
Seriously, who even cares about this stuff any more? I mean, of course people care about security, but its not really the primary thing, is it?
Pretty much everyone I know has an iPhone or an Android thingy. The choice is never about which one is more secure, its pretty much a Mac vs. PC type of religious thing, with the PC replaced with Android.
Sometimes, sometimes, they also haul around a company provided BB, which kinda, sorta, vaguely, gets used, but even thats pretty much fading. I suspect a huge chunk of these are long-term contracts that the company has signed, which is almost certainly not a good sign for RIM.
So, back to the study - this is the same study in which Trend Micro also sez. that the iPhone is a great device 'cos it doesn't have any removable storage - which tells you everything you need to know about this study, as even the diehard fanboys will admit that removable storage would be a good thing to have. The thing is, security ends up being self-defeating. All the spectacular mechanism you put in place to protect yourself end up either backfiring, or being worked around.
This is best summarized by Don Norman, when he sez.
Which pretty much sums up my take on the Trend Micro study. BB OS 7 may be great and secure and enterprise-ready and make your bed for you in the morning.
Sweet!
And all your enterprise users will be walking around with iPhones and Androids that they'll do everything on, thus totally bypassing your vaunted security.
So much for Security...
Which, I believe, is just about enough to get you a cup of coffee, if you happen to have an extra $3.50 lying around that is.
Seriously, who even cares about this stuff any more? I mean, of course people care about security, but its not really the primary thing, is it?
Pretty much everyone I know has an iPhone or an Android thingy. The choice is never about which one is more secure, its pretty much a Mac vs. PC type of religious thing, with the PC replaced with Android.
Sometimes, sometimes, they also haul around a company provided BB, which kinda, sorta, vaguely, gets used, but even thats pretty much fading. I suspect a huge chunk of these are long-term contracts that the company has signed, which is almost certainly not a good sign for RIM.
So, back to the study - this is the same study in which Trend Micro also sez. that the iPhone is a great device 'cos it doesn't have any removable storage - which tells you everything you need to know about this study, as even the diehard fanboys will admit that removable storage would be a good thing to have. The thing is, security ends up being self-defeating. All the spectacular mechanism you put in place to protect yourself end up either backfiring, or being worked around.
This is best summarized by Don Norman, when he sez.
The more secure you make something, the less secure it becomes. Why? Because when security gets in the way, sensible, well-meaning, dedicated people develop hacks and workarounds that defeat the security. Hence the prevalence of doors propped open by bricks and wastebaskets, of passwords pasted on the fronts of monitors or hidden under the keyboard or in the drawer, of home keys hidden under the mat or above the doorframe or under fake rocks that can be purchased for this purposeAs I've mentioned before, when Accessibility & Security are in opposition, figure out what you really want to accomplish, and then give Security appropriate amounts of The Boot. Not accessibility.
Which pretty much sums up my take on the Trend Micro study. BB OS 7 may be great and secure and enterprise-ready and make your bed for you in the morning.
Sweet!
And all your enterprise users will be walking around with iPhones and Androids that they'll do everything on, thus totally bypassing your vaunted security.
So much for Security...
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