BEST OF THE WEB

German government OKs BlackBerry’s acquisition of Secusmart

The German government has given BlackBerry Ltd. the green light to integrate the voice encryption of security vendor Secusmart GmbH on its devices and software.

It was back in July this year that BlackBerry (TSE: BB) announced its intentions to purchase the Dusseldorf-based firm that develops the software and hardware used to secure the phones of German government officials including that of Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The German government has about 2,500 BlackBerry devices equipped with a microSD card that contains Secusmart’s encryption software. The MicroSD card acts a separate hard drive for confidential data. Merkel, herself switched to such a device following the controversial 2013 leak of the Edward Snowden files which revealed the United States’ National Security Agency was tapping the chancellor’s mobile phone.

According to a report by Arstechnica.com, BlackBerry had to sign an anti-spying agreement in order for the deal to go through. There have been concerns among some German lawmakers regarding Canada’s close ties with the U.S.

According to reports, BlackBerry was required to provide the German information security agency, BSI, full access to its source code. The German government also required that Secusmart development work should continue to be done in Germany.

BlackBerry is also not allowed to share private information with foreign government or intelligence agencies.

Nestor E. Arellano
Nestor E. Arellano
Toronto-based journalist specializing in technology and business news. Blogs and tweets on the latest tech trends and gadgets.

Would you recommend this article?

Share

Thanks for taking the time to let us know what you think of this article!
We'd love to hear your opinion about this or any other story you read in our publication.


Jim Love, Chief Content Officer, IT World Canada

Featured Download

ITW in your inbox

Our experienced team of journalists and bloggers bring you engaging in-depth interviews, videos and content targeted to IT professionals and line-of-business executives.

More Best of The Web