RIM replies to Etisalat BlackBerry spyware threat
by The PocketBerry Team
“Independent sources have concluded that it is possible that the installed software could … enable unauthorized access to private or confidential information stored on the user’s smart phone,” the company said in an eight-page statement strongly distancing itself from the decision to install the software.
As we all know, previously last week, Etisalat had sent text messages to BlackBerry customers instructing them to follow a link to update their phones with a “performance enhancement patch.” Some customers who did so said the new software quickly drained the device’s batteries, prompting hundreds of complaints to Etisalat and sending users to Internet message boards looking for ways to fix the problem.
In a statement issued following complaints last week, Etisalat described the software change as a “performance enhancement patch.” It said the upgrades were required and linked to a handover to the 3G wireless technology standard. RIM went ahead and dismissed that explanation.
“RIM is not aware of any technical network concerns with the performance of BlackBerry smart phones on Etisalat’s network in the UAE,” RIM said, adding that it “does not endorse this software application.” Etisalat did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday. As we let you know last week, this was all behind a company called SS8 which was a surveillance company getting all these BlackBerry customers’ information through this patch.
SS8 describes itself in a company brochure as “the leader in communications interception and a worldwide provider of regulatory compliant, electronic intercept and surveillance solutions.” It markets its services to intelligence agencies, law enforcement and communication service providers. A person who answered the phone at SS8′s Middle East office in Dubai declined to comment and refused to provide a name. He said the company’s regional head, Derek Roga, was out of the country. A spokesman at the company’s headquarters in Milpitas, California, could not be reached. It is not clear why Etisalat encouraged users to install the application or if any private information was compromised.
More than 100,000 people in the UAE were affected by the patch, enough to start a big deal and go out public with it.
-by Otoniel Bruno
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