[MiyakSk33]

I have no idea why the majority feels that security is not important? I feel like part of a dying breed.

https://www.engadget.com/2016/07/07/...d-smartphones/

People aren't buying privacy-focused smartphones

Court documents have revealed that Blackphone executives didn't just mistake customer demand, but that from networks as well. Companies like BigOn Telecom, Kumion and America Movil all expressed an interest in buying tens, or hundreds, of thousands of units. But the firm took this as a guarantee of sales, and so borrowed plenty of cash to fund a production run of 250,000 devices. BigOn and Sumion subsequently pulled out and America Movil purchased only 6,000 of a planned 100,000 phone order.

The smartphone industry has moved beyond its peak, and the number of companies that can turn a profit is small. But the sheer number of high-quality privacy phones that had entered the market implied that the niche was at least surviving. Companies such as Turing, Sikur and Sirin Labs have followed in Silent Circle's footsteps in the hope of appealing to the privacy crowd, but this crowd may not exist.

For all of the talk of NSA spying and camera hacking, those concerns don't seem to have reached the average consumer. Or, alternatively, people aren't prepared to make the sacrifices necessary to make sure the government can't monitor their communications.

[early2bed]

Ignorance? I guess that's one way to look at it when reality is different from what you expect. Another way to look at it is that you were simply mistaken. Just because security is important does not mean I need to buy this phone. How many of my current security issues does this phone eliminate?

[BigBadWulf]

I disagree. Most people know the risks, but don't give a damn.

[Ment]

Most people don't need enterprise level of security and never will. Plus the popular phone OS are getting better at security all the time reducing the perceived and actual differences. That coupled with the higher price/lower spec of security based phone means consumers will be paying more out of pocket. Guess one can hope for a mass infection of Iphone and Galaxys. Doubt that will happen.

[MiyakSk33]

Ignorance? I guess that's one way to look at it when reality is different from what you expect. Another way to look at it is that you were simply mistaken.

Yes I do believe it is a form of groupthink. For example there is an article on Zuckerberg placing a piece of tape on his laptop camera. Why would he do that? I work in IT and understand that at the end of the day it is all 0s and 1s and it is not perfect. We are in the age where you essentially have a computer in your pocket and with that people need to realize the good and bad of that. It is irresponsible to not 'attempt' to protect yourself. This is one of the primary reasons I am still holding on to my BlackBerry.

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

Yes I do believe it is a form of groupthink. For example there is an article on Zuckerberg placing a piece of tape on his laptop camera. Why would he do that? I work in IT and understand that at the end of the day it is all 0s and 1s and it is not perfect. We are in the age where you essentially have a computer in your pocket and with that people need to realize the good and bad of that. It is irresponsible to not 'attempt' to protect yourself. This is one of the primary reasons I am still holding on to my BlackBerry.

We live in a world where most people used a Windows computer, without virus or malware protection... are you really surprised ?

At the end of the day I think it really comes down to most people just see no reason to be afraid. They haven't experienced an issue with their privacy being invaded due to their smartphone and they don't know of anyone that has. Sure their are reports of vulnerabilities and possibilities.... but that means very little without any personal context.

[bakron1]

Most folks know the security risk when using the grid, but usually don't have a major concern until a security issue bites them in the booty and usually by then it's too late.

I have always said having strong passwords and good common sense when using websites is a good start.

[filanto]

Laziness and the mentally that someone else will fix it for me or it's someone else's responsibility. Most people I know don't even have a simple pin to open the phone

Posted via CB10

[medic22003]

Well I happen to agree with you. This I don't have anything to hide so why worry mindset is idiotic in my opinion. It's not that I have nothing to hide it's that first it's none of their dadgum business what I do as long as I'm not doing something wrong and secondly the way they do it is un constitutional as heck. Get a warrant.

Posted with my shiny new Priv

[filanto]

I don't worry about the feds but I'm more worried that I might leave my phone somewhere and a percentage might go through my photos and see our house and use the GPS information on the photo to make a Christmas list for themselves. Plus they could read my posts and see many run on sentences.

Posted via CB10

[LazyEvul]

I have always said having strong passwords and good common sense when using websites is a good start.

Strong, unique passwords are genuinely one of the best things you can do to protect yourself. And keep your software up-to-date - those two will cover the average consumer from a majority of real-world attacks. Of course, if you have an Android device, you may have issues getting updates to begin with, but that's a whole other discussion.

We live in a world where most people used a Windows computer, without virus or malware protection... are you really surprised ?

Antivirus software can actually open up more vulnerabilities on your PC because of all the access it needs, which may not be a worthwhile tradeoff depending on your threat model. Windows Defender has been built-in to Windows 10, but it bypasses many of risks associated with typical antivirus software by being very unobtrusive - though that also limits its ability to detect viruses, of course. Security is hard

At the end of the day I think it really comes down to most people just see no reason to be afraid. They haven't experienced an issue with their privacy being invaded due to their smartphone and they don't know of anyone that has. Sure their are reports of vulnerabilities and possibilities.... but that means very little without any personal context.

Very much this. I think it also feels futile to a lot of people, as if they need to be a technological expert to attain a modicum of security on the web. That's not necessarily true, but I can see how it might feel that way to someone without the interest in tech that people like us share.

[DenverRalphy]

I won't pretend that there aren't users who just choose to be ignorant. But at the same time, there are many users who simply assess their needs and determine for themselves just how much security or privacy they want or actually need.

There are those who feel that as long as their device is only locked up enough to ensure that some random Joe can't pick up their device and poke around through it is security enough. For many, that's all they really need as long as they use a modicum amount of common sense with their online practices and monitor which apps they install and use. There's really nothing wrong with this practice, and the user is typically aware that if they do something stupid then there may be consequences as a result. It's up to the user as to whether they're willing to accept the consequences. These people simply feel that they don't need Ft. Knox security to lock up casual correspondence with friends and family or shopping habits, and are willing to sacrifice a bit in security to accommodate an elevated level of convenience. This demographic easily represents the lion's share of the mobile market.

The users who assess that the information contained on their devices increases their chances of being a target for outside sources making a more concerted effort to get it, will typically step up the security or purchase a hardware/platform more conducive to increase the effort needed to break in. Until the effort isn't worth the reward, or the security is high enough that it locks out any attempts altogether. Users who need the increased security is an incrementally smaller demographic depending on how much security they need, and eventually decreases to niche levels of the market.

In a nutshell, most users typically try to choose the right tool for the job. You don't need a 10lb sledge to hammer a tack just to hang a picture frame.

[BigBadWulf]

When it comes to consumers, I agree with you Ralphy, but with regards to the businesses sighted by the article, they imo have chosen to take a big risk. I can't believe it's ignorance. IT managers are paid to know.

[PantherBlitz]

Most consumers don't go around thinking about what might happen. They are motivated to buy whatever catches their eye or finding "deals". Still, borrowing money to produce that many phones without contracts in hand? There will soon be some loan officers looking for work.

[StephanieMaks]

For the average consumer, I don't believe BlackBerry is any more secure than, say, iOS.

I mean, unless you're paying for BES and have your device locked down and managed, I've yet to hear a compelling argument that my Q5 is particularily more secure than my iPhone 6s. Both are running the latest OS. Both have good passwords. Both have their memory encrypted. I think. I'm not sure if the Q5 is encrypted but I assume it is. I know the iPhone is.

I don't worry about people accessing my data on either device. And neither of them sync with 'the cloud', so I'm not worried about a data breach that way.

I think when people start harping on the whole ZOMG Securety thing, they fail to recognize that there is a point at which 'good enough' is, in fact, good enough. (Granted that point will be different for different people, businesses, and governments.)

[Dunt Dunt Dunt]

When it comes to consumers, I agree with you Ralphy, but with regards to the businesses sighted by the article, they imo have chosen to take a big risk. I can't believe it's ignorance. IT managers are paid to know.

Maybe they do know....

The choice not to use BB10 probably had as much to do with BlackBerry financial state and questions about the company's overall viability - especially after the FOR SALE sign went up.

And if an iPhone is OK to be deployed for the FBI or ICE.... with proper management it probably meets the security requirements of a big portion of the business world. IT Managers are more worried about the PC networks that actually house the data...

[LazyEvul]

I mean, unless you're paying for BES and have your device locked down and managed, I've yet to hear a compelling argument that my Q5 is particularily more secure than my iPhone 6s. Both are running the latest OS. Both have good passwords. Both have their memory encrypted. I think. I'm not sure if the Q5 is encrypted but I assume it is. I know the iPhone is.

Unless you've enabled it yourself, the Q5 won't be encrypted - BlackBerry 10 does not do full device encryption by default.

[Bla1ze]

Most only care about security after the fact. When something goes wrong, they get angry. Yet, in the time before something happens, they do nothing or very little to prevent it.

[filanto]

When it comes to consumers, I agree with you Ralphy, but with regards to the businesses sighted by the article, they imo have chosen to take a big risk. I can't believe it's ignorance. IT managers are paid to know.

Can you turn off the bold, it's a bit much

Posted via CB10

[techvisor]

Yes there is ignorance, but it is from people like the OP and like-minded individuals. What people fail to grasp, refuse to believe, or are just uneducated, is that mobile devices, particularly IOS and Windows Phone, are generally secure already. You�re baffled by the situation (as evidenced by the title "I guess ignorance rules") because your belief is based on the false premises that smartphones are generally insecure (wrong) and people don't care about security (wrong again). Sure they are not 100% secure, but they are secure enough that making security the top selection criteria makes no sense for most new purchases.

Yes I do believe it is a form of groupthink. For example there is an article on Zuckerberg placing a piece of tape on his laptop camera. Why would he do that?

There is a big difference in security risk between a laptop and a smartphone.

[co4nd]

First I don't consider the NSA or FBI prying a security concern. I fully support their actions and think they don't go far enough. Second if used properly the iPhone is secure enough for my needs

[anon(9353145)]

Most only care about security after the fact. When something goes wrong, they get angry. Yet, in the time before something happens, they do nothing or very little to prevent it.

That is so completely true, and not just with mobile phones, the internet, etc. lol. "It won't happen to me".

I have now taken to updating a password protected spreadsheet of friends' and family members' account information and passwords because when I inevitably have to help them I got sick of sitting there for fifteen minutes while they tried to guess their password, or look for it.

[BigBadWulf]

Can you turn off the bold, it's a bit much

Posted via CB10

Glad you're paying attention to something.

Yeah, I know...I know...
Whatever

[filanto]

Glad you're paying attention to something.

Yeah, I know...I know...
Whatever

What was the topic. I fell asleep

Posted via CB10

[to boldly go]

Zuckerberg placing a piece of tape on his laptop camera. Why would he do that?

Zuckerberg secretly uses a BlackBerry as his personal phone. And he puts tape on the phone cameras too.

I had a Samsung tablet that would take my picture when I wasnt even touching it. And I dont know where the picture went. I taped the front facing camera. Later a note in the bottom right notifications complained that it couldnt see my eyes.

Somehow I just dont worry about my BlackBerry spying on me in that manner. It is irreplaceable.

CrackBerry is cutting and pasting my letters again today, so I'm having to compose offsite and paste my message again.