The IT Nerd

BlackBerry Limited announced findings from a new global research whitepaper, which surveyed IT decision makers on corporate IoT deployments. Conducted by 451 Research, the whitepaper titled, “Securing the Enterprise of Things: Opportunity for securing IoT with a unified platform emerging as IoT popularity grows,” reveals that huge opportunities are balanced against significant cybersecurity concerns.

Survey respondents represent a wide range of vertical industries, including financial services, government and healthcare. Below are some key themes from the research:

• Seventy-eight percent of respondents indicated interest in a solution that allows them to manage all their endpoints in one place.
• Sixty-three percent noted that security is the “top” concern regarding digital technologies and processes. However, only a little over one-third (37 percent) actually have a formal digital transformation strategy in place.
• Organizations are least prepared against external threats, with nearly two-thirds (61 percent) citing hackers and cyberwarfare as top concerns.
• Thirty-nine percent of respondents from very large organizations (more than 10,000 employees) revealed that a lack of collaboration among internal departments is a potential barrier to unified endpoint management, while 51 percent of mid-sized organizations felt the same way.

The new whitepaper is available for download at www.blackberry.com/enterprise-of-things.
For more information about BlackBerry’s EOT solutions, please visit www.blackberry.com/enterprise.

For as long as I can remember, BlackBerry has been the dominant smartphone used by Canadian Government employees because of their encryption and security offerings. If you go anywhere in Ottawa, you’ll see them everywhere. But that appears to be changing according to Metro News:

Shared Services Canada (SSC), the agency that manages the government IT infrastructure, now has a small number of Samsung phones and some Apple phones that can be used.

BlackBerry was once the dominant player in the smartphone market, but has lost ground to other companies like Apple, Google and Samsung.

An SCC spokesperson said they’re moving to keep up with the times.

“SSC is committed to supporting the modernization of the Government of Canada’s telecommunications infrastructure,” said Frederica Dupuis.

“SSC is taking a new approach to mobile service to better serve its clients, use new technology and adapt to changes in the marketplace.”

Now I will point out that if someone wants to use a Galaxy S8 or an iPhone 7 Plus, it will likely have to be just as secure as a BlackBerry. Which to be frank, would be an easy bar to hit. Plus I will point out that BlackBerry devices will still be supported. But I suspect that once people get a look at BlackBerry’s competition, they may defect to it.

• Manage and Secure Microsoft Office 365 Mobile Applications: IT can manage and apply protection policies to Microsoft Office 365 mobile applications such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint from BlackBerry UEM.
• Access Business Data on Unmanaged Laptops: Users of BlackBerry Access, will now be able to securely work with business data on their personal or BYOL (Bring-Your-Own-Laptop) Windows 10 and MacOS computers.
• Provide In-line Comments, @Mentions and DocuSign: BlackBerry’s secure Enterprise File Synchronization and Sharing (EFSS) solution, BlackBerry Workspaces, has been updated to allow in-line comments, @mentions and alerts. DocuSign has also been integrated, adding a key workflow for legally binding documents such as loan applications and financial transactions.
• Leverage Application Analytics: BlackBerry Analytics can now track daily and monthly active users, daily minutes used, usage by OS type and version, daily launch count and user engagement by feature (such as 1:1 chat vs group chat). This application analytics capability gives IT and developers the keyinsight they need to increase business productivity, such as modifying UX flow, modifying training or altering maintenance schedules.
• Manage More Wearables: BlackBerry has extended its endpoint management software capabilities to include modern workforce devices such as smart glasses. Applications specific to wearables, such as Ubimax and Atheer, can also be securely managed.

BlackBerry COO Marty Beard has a blog post that everyone, but specifically Canadians  should read. It discusses the company’s new Vulnerable Persons Project. In short, BlackBerry joined the Vulnerable Persons Project and worked with the Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke (MCK) and with enterprise partners such as Forrest Green to implement the technology required for both socioeconomic growth and the protection of vulnerable people within Indigenous communities. It’s a very eye opening read and one that is worth your time and attention.

The blog post can be found here and there’s also a podcast available at the link that is also worth your time and attention.

BlackBerry Limited is expanding the capability of its industry-leading crisis communication software to enable government agencies and large organizations to account for their people in real-time. Available today, the new AtHoc Account is a FedRAMP-authorized solution that automates personnel accountability and crisis communication processes by providing safety and availability status updates of people before, during and after an event – ultimately providing the information leaders need to make operational decisions.

With an integrated approach to personnel accountability, AtHoc Account combines inputs from managers about their team, call center operators, data streams from HR and travel systems, as well as self-reporting by individuals. It enables organizations to meet U.S. Federal mandates for accounting for their people by consolidating safety information into areport that can be initiated at a variety of organizational levels: group, installation, facility, regional or enterprise-wide.

In addition to AtHoc Account, the FedRAMP authorized BlackBerry AtHoc cloud service includes AtHoc Alert and AtHoc Connect, among other capabilities. Together, these offerings enable agencies to securely share information critical to safety during a crisis with their people and across agencies.

* AtHoc Alert enables secure multi-channel, bi-directional mass notification using almost any type of device, including via secure mobile apps, telephony and texting as well as integrating with other mass notification channels such as loudspeakers, two-way radios, and digital displays.

* AtHoc Connect allows agencies to communicate with each other during crises, addressing some of the more critical deficiencies in crisis management and answering interoperability requirements set out by the DHS Interoperable Communications Act H.R. 615.

* BlackBerry AtHoc’s crisis communication platform is used to protect more than 70 percent of federal government personnel, including the US Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines, Department of Treasury, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Energy, the Federal Aviation Administration and others. Only AtHoc Account ensures U.S. federal agencies comply with the following mandates:

• Department of Homeland Security: DHS Directive 008-04
• ISO 22301 and other business resilience standards
• Safety law emergency plans under OSHA and Canada’s equivalent
• Department of Defense: DoDI 3001.02
• Department of Veterans Affairs: VA Directive 0325

  For more information, please visit: https://us.blackberry.com/enterprise/secure-communication/athoc.

BlackBerry has shared new details on its broad licensing strategy which addresses the growing need for secure, connected devices and endpoints in today’s Enterprise of Things.

The first phase of BlackBerry’s strategy, announced in September 2016, was focused on providing the most secure and comprehensive Android software for smartphones around the world manufactured and marketed by TCL Communication, and Optiemus Infracom Ltd. The company is now pursuing additional endpoints which could include tablets, wearables, medical devices, appliances, point-of-sale terminals and other smartphones.

According to BlackBerry CEO John Chen:

“There is an incredible opportunity for connected devices to improve lives, but to realize its full potential, privacy and security must be embedded in every end point from the start. For example, companies providing medical monitoring devices must protect health data on the device, guarantee it connects securely to the healthcare system, and most importantly ensure that it cannot be hacked, BlackBerry Secure helps solve this triple threat. We have taken a long-term and thoughtful approach to our licensing strategy, which includes an expansive view of the entire Enterprise of Things ecosystem. As part of this strategy, we will work with a wide range of manufacturers to integrate BlackBerry Secure software into both BlackBerry-branded and co-branded devices.”

Recently, I started to converse with an individual who had the BlackBerry Priv which refused to play nice with his recently purchased Hyundai Santa Fe Sport. Now, my first thought was that seeing as the BlackBerry Priv is a Android device, it should work. But in his case, when you plugged it into the car via the USB port, the infotainment system said “not media compatible” which meant that the infotainment system is unable to talk to the device to figure out what it is. Now, he had done a lot of the troubleshooting for me, including running the update from Hyundai Canada that gives some owners of 2017 Hyundai Canada vehicles Apple CarPlay. But he wasn’t further ahead. Intrigued by this, I made a trip up to Newmarket Ontario to see this first hand.

The first thing that I noticed is that the BlackBerry Priv when plugged into the car wasn’t visible to the Android Auto instance that was installed on the car. That said to me that this wasn’t an Android Auto problem. The second thing that I noticed is that the car couldn’t see any of the media on the device. I reasoned that this was due to the BlackBerry Priv not being able to switch into MTP or Media Transfer Protocol mode properly which is what is required for the phone and the infotainment system to talk to each other. That was further confirmed when I observed that when the phone was plugged in, a notification would display that it was in charging mode. When I tapped the notification, it gave me the option to switch to MTP. But when I did that, I observed it trying to do so and failing. Then the infotainment system would give the “not media compatible” error message. However, there was one occasion where upon connecting it, it did work and Android Auto popped up fine. But I was unable to replicate that success again.

What I believed was going on was that BlackBerry had altered the behavior of how Android interacts with the USB ports in the interest securing the device from being hacked via the USB port, and that was affecting the ability to connect to Android Auto. How to overcome that I honestly had no idea. But based on what I observed, the owner of the phone was able to come up with a way around this issue. He put the phone into developer mode and enable USB debugging mode. By doing that, Android Auto now works. Likely because he’s bypassing the security that BlackBerry puts on the device.

Here’s why what he did is a #fail:

1. The fact that developer mode even exists on a phone that is supposed to be secure is a #fail because he was able to bypass some of the security that the BlackBerry Priv offers via instructions found easily using Google. If you can do that, how truly secure can the phone be?
2. It’s pretty clear that BlackBerry didn’t test the Priv out with Android Auto before shipping it. That seems to be backed up by people who own VW’s or Honda products among others who are having similar issues. What’s doubly strange is that a lot of infotainment systems in cars have the QNX operating system running on them, and BlackBerry owns QNX. You’d think that one BlackBerry product would talk to another BlackBerry product. But clearly that’s not the case.

But what’s really problematic about this whole situation is that this person could have been caught in the middle of two companies pointing fingers at each other had he pursued this on his own. In other words, Hyundai would blame BlackBerry, and vice versa with no real resolution to the issue. Not to pump my own tires here, but you have to wonder what might have happened to this person had I not got involved to provide some assistance.

I have an offer to the folks at BlackBerry. The person I worked with on this is a fan of your products. I am willing to put you in touch with him so that you can fix this issue for him and all your customers. Seeing as he’s within 90 minutes of your headquarters in Waterloo, this is a great opportunity to see this first hand. You’d really score some brownie points with him and I’d post a very positive follow up on that front. Just reach out to me and we can get the ball rolling. Seriously. While you’re at it, you may want to look at the fact that developer mode even exists on this device as that’s a bit of a problem from a security standpoint as illustrated here.

So how about it BlackBerry? Will you take me up on my offer?

BlackBerry CEO John Chen was joined by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau this morning to unveil the BlackBerry QNX Autonomous Vehicle Innovation Centre (AVIC). Housed within the BlackBerry QNX facility in Ottawa, Ontario, the centre will accelerate the realization of connected and self-driving vehicles by developing production-ready software independently and in collaboration with partners in the private and public sector.

As part of this initiative, BlackBerry QNX plans to recruit and hire local software engineers to work on ongoing and emerging engineering projects for connected and autonomous cars. The Ministry of Transportation of Ontario recently approved BlackBerry QNX to test autonomous vehicles on Ontario roads as part of a pilot program. One of the centre’s first projects will be supporting this pilot as well as BlackBerry QNX’s work with the University of Waterloo, PolySync, and Renesas Electronics to build an autonomous concept vehicle.

BlackBerry QNX has been supplying mission-critical embedded software to the automotive industry for over ten years and can be found in more than 60 million vehicles today. Millions of telematics-equipped cars on the road are using BlackBerry’s Certicom security technology for communication authentication and authorization. Already a leading supplier of software for infotainment, acoustics, telematics and digital instrument clusters, BlackBerry QNX is extending its platform expertise into ADAS (Advanced Driver Assist Systems), CVAV (Connected Vehicle and Autonomous Vehicle) systems and secure Over the Air Software Update services.

Experts predict that 50 percent of all cars will connect to the cloud by 2020, and the wide range of “connected things” could exceed 20 billion. In the coming hyper-connected world, cars will soon carry one of the highest concentrations of Internet of Things (IoT) edge nodes and sensors, generating a vast amount of valuable and actionable data. Anticipating this shift, BlackBerry is investing in key technologies and building a product portfolio that will provide the embedded intelligence that powers the core electronics of connected and autonomous cars.

For more information on the BlackBerry QNX AVIC, please visit: http://www.qnx.com/content/qnx/en/blackberry-qnx-autonomous-vehicle-innovation-centre.html

BlackBerry today unveiled its mobile-native approach to security  with the launch of a comprehensive platform designed for the Enterprise of Things. BlackBerry’s new platform is designed to be the foundation that enables the company to move to software, is cloud enabled and addresses the entire enterprise from end-point to end-point. This platform completes the integration of the company’s prior acquisitions of key technologies such as Good Technology, WatchDox, AtHoc and Encription.

Data breaches and cybersecurity threats are some of the biggest roadblocks to realizing the greatest potential of the Enterprise of Things, which BlackBerry defines as the network of intelligent connections and endpoints within the enterprise that enable products to move from sketch to scale. It is a collection of devices, computers, sensors, trackers, equipment and other “things” that communicate with each other to enable smart product development, distribution, marketing and sales.

The totality of the BlackBerry solution is called BlackBerry Secure and is grounded in the company’s mobile software security platform. It helps companies manage and secure their mobile devices and connected things and secures communications for all messaging and file types – ultimately opening up new markets for BlackBerry where multiple endpoint mobile security management and applications are critical. For example, BlackBerry’s platform will prevent hackers from penetrating devices and computers, provide intelligence for secure supply chain communications, ensure patient confidentiality in healthcare and safeguard assets in the financial industry.

In addition to more than 80 security certifications, BlackBerry recently ranked the highest in all six use cases of Gartner’s “Critical Capabilities for High-Security Mobility Management” report. The company’s heritage in security has led to the following products that meet the highest security and regulatory requirements, accelerate key business processes and reduce total cost of ownership – ultimately giving organizations complete confidence in their endpoint management:

• BlackBerry UEM (formerly BES12) – Provides the granular control and visibility that IT needs to secure all endpoints, along with the flexibility to support a wide array of productivity and other business use cases. BlackBerry UEM supports all major OS platforms (Android for Work, Samsung KNOX, iOS, Windows 10, OS X and BlackBerry 10) and device ownership models with a single console. It also supports native MDM controls for managing device policies and MAM capabilities for deploying approved business apps.
• BlackBerry Dynamics (formerly Good Dynamics) – Delivers a foundation for secure enterprise mobility by offering an advanced, mature development platform and container for mobile apps. BlackBerry Dynamics is designed to eliminate the risk of data leakage by delivering proven security at the app level. It is also flexible enough to support a vast and ever-changing set of apps, workflows, and business processes.
• BlackBerry Workspaces (formerly WatchDox) – Enables users to share, edit and control their files on every device with the highest level of security due to embedded digital rights management (DRM) protection in the files.
• BlackBerry 2FA (formerly Strong Authentication) – Allows users to replace the cost and hassle of a physical token and typing in codes with the simplicity of acknowledging a prompt on their secured mobile device for two-factor authentication.
• BlackBerry Enterprise Identity – Enables users to Single Sign-on (SSO) into a variety of third-party cloud services such as Office365, Box, Dropbox, Workday and Salesforce. Even more compelling is Mobile Zero Sign-on (MZSO), where simply unlocking the phone grants transparent access to services without requiring a password.
• BlackBerry SDK – Allows application developers to easily integrate any BlackBerry service (i.e., BlackBerry UEM, BlackBerry Workspaces and BlackBerry Dynamics) into their applications via a Platform-as-a-Service model.

As part of BlackBerry’s platform, the company is launching a new portfolio of business class applications designed for the mobile-first work environment. Available in January, the apps outlined below are simple for IT to deploy and provide a seamless experience across smartphones, tablets and PCs:

• BlackBerry Work (formerly Good Work) – Offers a secure, intuitive and integrated collaboration experience. It combines email, calendar, contacts, presence, document access, document editing and more, allowing organizations to mobilize their workforce effectively.
• BlackBerry Access (formerly Good Access) – Gives your organization the ability to confidently enable mobile access to a broad range of web apps and intranet resources containing sensitive information.
• BlackBerry Connect (formerly Good Connect) – Accelerates decision-making by allowing employees to securely connect and collaborate in real time on their choice of mobile device.
• BlackBerry Share (formerly Good Share) – Allows employees to safely share documents and other content while on the go, on any device.
• BlackBerry Tasks (formerly Good Tasks) – Provides the ability to securely create, open and prioritize tasks synchronized with Microsoft Exchange.
• BlackBerry Notes – Enables users to stay on top of business workflows by creating, editing and maintaining a tile-view list of notes.

BlackBerry’s enterprise app ecosystem continues to grow with an expanding roster of developing partners like ISEC7, Zimperium, Polaris, Swyft and Acronis. For more information on BlackBerry’s platform and core capabilities available today, please visit: www.blackberry.com/enterpriseupdate.

BlackBerry today announced the latest in its series of most secure Android smartphones, DTEK60. As part of BlackBerry’s transition towards a device software licensing strategy – which allows it to focus on putting “the smart in the phone” – the DTEK60’s hardware is manufactured by TCL and comes equipped with the trusted security software BlackBerry is known for. It is now available for sale at ShopBlackBerry in North America and Europe and will roll out to other regions in coming weeks.

DTEK60 is the second device in the DTEK series of Android smartphones. It provides enterprises and organizations with full access to the Android ecosystem and higher-end specs to help power productivity. It comes equipped with all the security features that BlackBerry’s Android OS devices have, including best-in-class security patching and the DTEK by BlackBerry app that allows users to monitor and control their privacy on their phone.

Features available on the DTEK60 include:

• Fingerprint Sensor: For quick and convenient turn on and unlock, the BlackBerry Fingerprint Sensor provides added security for unlocking your phone, accessing Password Keeper and making purchases – including Android Pay. Add up to five fingerprints which are fully encrypted with security you can trust.
• BlackBerry Intelligent Keyboard: DTEK60 has a smart keyboard designed to learn from users and increase typing accuracy and speed. It provides word suggestions as you type and includes up to three languages, letting you flick them into place for faster conversations.
• BlackBerry Hub: This unified inbox is an irreplaceable tool for consolidating all of your messages in one place – whether it is email, calendar, social or phone calls.
• Customizable BlackBerry Convenience Key: With the press of a button, the Convenience Key provides quick access to your most used applications and more.
• Stunning Screen: DTEK60 has a 5.5” Quad HD display, capable of displaying 16 million colors. The screen is made of scratch-resistant glass and features a specialized oleophobic coating to protect against smudges and fingerprints.
• Expandable Memory: With support for micro SD cards up to 2 TB, DTEK60 provides the flexibility to add affordable and hot-swappable memory to download, install, capture and share as your needs evolve.
• Dazzling Camera: DTEK60 is engineered to deliver professional-looking photos with an 8MP front facing camera and a 21MP auto-focus rear camera. Plus, features like Phase Detection Auto Focus and a dual-tone LED flash are designed to help the camera focus instantly and accurately for a blur-free, realistic looking photos, even in low light.
• Long Lasting Battery:  DTEK60 packs a 3000 mAh battery with enough power to withstand up to 24 hours of mixed use.

The device also comes equipped with the security and productivity features that past Android for BlackBerry devices have included:

• Rapid Security Patching: BlackBerry has a record of being the quickest to deliver security patches, setting the bar in incident response and patch management to protect your device from malicious threats. 
• DTEK by BlackBerry App: Enables users to automatically monitor their OS and apps to know when their privacy could be at risk and to take action to improve it. The DTEK app also monitors applications and notifies you when someone is: taking pictures or videos without your knowledge, turning your microphone on, sending a text message, or accessing your contacts or location.
• Hardware Root of Trust: BlackBerry uses a proprietary technique that adds security from the start, allowing for the tracking, verification and provisioning of the DTEK60.
• Secure Boot Process: Starting with the root of trust, each stage of DTEK60’s secure boot chain must first verify that the next component is fully intact before proceeding, ensuring your device has not been tampered with since the last restart.
• Android OS hardening: BlackBerry provides additional security patches, improves upon Android’s native Address Space Layout Randomization and reduces the number of system applications and services running with elevated permissions. This makes it more difficult for attackers to compromise the OS.
• FIPS 140-2 Compliant Full Disk Encryption: Protects your private information, like pictures or bank information, from being stolen if you were to lose your phone.
• Android for Work and Google Play for Work: Allows for fast, simple and secure integration with an enterprise environment as well as easy access to numerous rich business and IT-managed apps.
• Full Enterprise Mobility Management Support: DTEK60 supports BlackBerry’s powerful suite of EMM applications and secure productivity solutions, including: WatchDox by BlackBerry for secure file-sharing, Good Work for business-class email and collaboration tools, Strong Authentication by BlackBerry as a VPN solution, SecuSUITE for Enterprise for secure voice and instant messaging communication, BBM Protected for encrypted messaging and BES12 for secure cross-platform management.

Availability and Pricing

Starting today, DTEK60 is available to purchase from ShopBlackBerry.com in the US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy and the Netherlands for $499 USD ($650 CDN, €579 and £475). Availability of DTEK60 in additional global channels and countries will be announced in the coming weeks. 

Customers who order DTEK60 from ShopBlackBerry.com will receive a complimentary accessory bundle.  US and Canada customers will receive a DTEK60 Soft Shell and Rapid Charger for free and customers in the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands will receive a DTEK60 Pocket Case and Rapid Charger for free. This offer expires on November 8th at 11:59 pm PST.