GOVERNMENTS SKYPE CONVERSATIONS

SNOOP ON YOUR SKYPE CONVERSATIONS BY GOVERNMENT

Now governments might now be able to monitor Voice over Internet Protocol  conversations by ‘silently recording’ them in real time on services such as Skype. Faced with the seemingly mammoth task of trying to monitor conversations over the web, governments seem to have found an ally in this new spying technology.

Dennis Chang, a California-based businessman has obtained a patent for a ‘revolutionary’ solution; something that he says is a “next-generation surveillance technology designed to covertly intercept online chats and video calls in real time.

Chang, the president of the Sun Valley based VoIP-PAL, a service similar to Skype’s has won a series of patents for a system he claims will help authorities identify and monitor suspects merely by accessing their username and subscriber data. Since VoIP software converts analogue audio signals into digital data packets to let people make phone calls over the Internet, it turns into a very expensive, complex affair for law enforcement agencies to tap.“VoIP services work by digitising callers' analogue voice signals and transmitting them as packets of digital data to send over the internet directly to recipients. Because of the fragmentary nature of the data sent, and the vast amounts of information sent alongside it, it is difficult for any eavesdropper to single out a consistent stream to listen in to, says the Daily Mail in its report.With 4G connections making it easier for people across the world to conduct discussions over VoIP services, Governments are worried about how it will affect their surveillance methodology over the Internet.

The problems of tracking related to VoIP have led certain countries such as Ethiopia and Oman to block the services on security grounds. The FBI back in the United States too has referred to this as the ‘Going Dark’ problem and are pushing for new powers to force Internet chat providers to build in secret backdoors to wiretap suspected criminals’ online communications.

The patent will help in tracking suspects down using billing records that associate names and addresses with usernames. This capability would make not only audio conversations but any other data streams such as pure data and/or video or multimedia data open for interception.

This system could be circumvented if users are paranoid enough to use false subscriber data and services to mask their IP addresses. Nevertheless, this patent could be a watershed moment in the quest of the governments of the world to monitor suspects in the name of law enforcement.

In India too, the government had made its fears apparent about their inability to monitor conversations on Blackberry Messenger, starting off a chain of events and stand offs with RIM. After going back and forth several times for around four years, RIM finally agreed to hand over encryption keys for its secure corporate emails and popular messenger services. The company also recently demonstrated a solution through which messages and mails exchanged between Blackberry handsets can be intercepted before making them available to Indian security agencies. The government hopes to halt the misuse of the encrypted services in the country.

 

BLACKBERRY 10 APPWORLD

BLACKBERRY 10 APPWORLD TO FOCUS APP QUALITY

Research In Motion is pushing for app quality, not quantity, with its make-or-break BlackBerry 10 devices set for launch on January 30, and targeting applications to customers in various regions. RIM's projected 100,000 apps - a record for any new platform at launch - will still be a fraction of those available on Apple or Google devices.But it is a stronger showing than RIM's PlayBook tablet computer which was slammed at its 2011 launch for a dearth of apps and incomplete software. In an interview with Reuters on Wednesday, RIM Chief Executive Thorsten Heins admitted that app libraries play a crucial role in the success or failure of smartphones. But he said the game is not just about numbers."The tactic we are deploying is by country and by region. We are aiming to have the most important 200 to 400 apps available, because many applications are regional and they really do have a regional flavour," Heins said. RIM says it aims to offer both the most popular applications in the market, and also those most relevant to Blackberry aficionados - people Heins described as hyper-connected multi-taskers who need to get things done.RIM's ultra-secure BlackBerry was once the smartphone of choice for government and corporate elites. But rivals have taken giant bites out of RIM's market share, especially in North America, and the company's stock has slumped. The BlackBerry remains popular in many emerging markets, partly for its popular BBM messaging system. With this in mind, RIM has hosted events with developers across the globe."We've done 30 jam conferences in various cities all around the world, to get the bucket filled with meaningful local apps and not just a huge bunch of applications that you collect and throw at your audience," he said. "It is a very, very targeted approach."Heins, who has met with customers and carriers in a series of whirlwind global tours, came across as relaxed and confident in the interview, in RIM's Waterloo headquarters.Speaking rapid fire English with just a hint of an accent from his native Germany, he acknowledged that RIM's fate may depend on the success of BB10, but he said feedback from clients has been very encouraging.RIM hopes its new line of BB10 smartphones will help it claw back market share from Apple's iPhone and devices powered by Google's Android operating system. Developers say like what they see, but analysts are not convinced that RIM's gamble on BB10 will succeed.

BlackBerry 10 -Launch in JAN 2013

BLACKBERRY 10 LAUNCH DATE - JANUARY 30, 2013

Blackberry-maker rim has finally announced that the blackberry 10 launch event will take place on january 30, 2013. This day will mark the official launch of its new platform - blackberry 10, as well as the unveiling of the first two blackberry 10 smartphones.

The event will happen simultaneously in multiple countries around the globe, where details of the smartphones and their availability will be announced.the blackberry 10 platform has recently achieved the much-coveted us government security clearance for its yet-to-be launched platform for blackberry 10 devices, which would allow government agencies to deploy the devices, along with the new enterprise management platform to run the devices, as soon as the new smartphones are launched. This marks the first time blackberry products have been certified ahead of their launch.

In addition, the company recently announced said it has begun carrier testing of its new line of blackberry 10 devices, a crucial step ahead of next year's launch of the make-or-break line of smartphones. Recently "blackberry 10 achieved lab entry with more than 50 carriers, a key step in our preparedness for the launch of blackberry 10 in the first quarter of 2013," chief executive thorsten heins said in a brief statement.

Rim, which once commanded the lead in the smartphone market, has rapidly lost ground to apple's iphone and samsung's line of galaxy products, especially in north american and european markets, as customers abandon its aging blackberry devices.

Blackberry 10 promises to offer features like blackberry flow, blackberry hub, blackberry balance, and the all-new blackberry keyboard. The launch of blackberry 10 is going to be a make-or-break situation for rim.