NATO selects BlackBerry’s encrypted voice technology for secure calls

The NATO Communications and Information (NCI) Agency has awarded a contract for BlackBerry’s SecuSUITE for Government to encrypt the conversations of its technology and cyber leaders wherever they communicate – in the workplace, at home or when travelling abroad.

The NCI Agency helps NATO’s 29 Member Nations communicate securely and work together in smarter ways. It acquires, deploys and defends communication systems for NATO’s political decision-makers and Command Centres, working on the front lines against cyber attacks. Due to the classified nature of the information the NCI Agency handles, it’s critical that all communications remain secure, combating any opportunity for a cyber criminal to electronically eavesdrop on conversations.

“As cyber criminals and state-sponsored actors become increasingly more sophisticated, we needed a highly secure way for our cyber leaders to have phone conversations with people inside and outside of our organisation regardless of where they are in the world,” said Kevin Scheid, general manager of the NCI Agency. “BlackBerry’s voice encryption technology helps solve this challenge and strengthens our elite cyber defence strategy.”

Dr Christoph Erdmann, senior vice-president of BlackBerry SecuSMART at BlackBerry, responded: “Eavesdropping on calls is one of the easiest ways to gain access to private information. We’re extremely proud that the NCI Agency, a world leader in the development and use of technology that keeps NATO nations secure, has put its trust in BlackBerry’s software to secure voice communication. No matter the operating system or ‘thing’ used to communicate, BlackBerry’s arsenal of cyber security technology ensures that our customers’ data remains private.”

BlackBerry’s SecuSUITE for Government supports Android and iOS smart phones and tablets, and can be can be installed on-premise, in a Data Centre or in the cloud.

Use cases for the solution include: 

*Secure conferencing: Encrypts conversations between a secure conference bridge and a SecuSUITE for Government-enabled devices

*Secure landing: Encrypts mobile devices to a landline within a network

*Break-in: Protects any communication between a mobile or landline on the user’s home network to a SecuSUITE for Government-enabled mobile device

*Break-out: Secures mobile devices to the employee’s home network and from there to external mobile or landlines through PSTN extension

SecuSUITE for Government has been evaluated and certified to be compliant with the Common Criteria protection profile for VoIP applications and SIP servers. It has also earned a NIAP certification and has been placed on the NSA Commercial Solutions for Classified Program component list of products certified for use on classified systems.

*For more information on BlackBerry’s SecuSUITE for Government visit blackberry.com/government

Next Generation Networks is focus of Euralarm Task Group Forum

The Europe-wide transition of traditional (ie PSTN) telecom networks towards all-IP communications networks that’s in different stages is having a significant impact on alarm signalling systems across countries. With this in mind, Euralarm’s Task Group on Next Generation Networks is now focusing on that transition.

Euralarm members the British Security Industry Association (BSIA) and the Fire Industry Association are hosting a high-profile forum on how changes to the UK telecommunications network may affect the fire and security industry. The event will be held on Thursday 15 March at the offices of UBM in central London and offers the opportunity to hear from the experts about what the impact of the transition will be.

Euralarm’s Task Group is also running a Workshop prior to the conference. To be held the day before, the Workshop is centred on developing an understanding of progress around Next Generation Networks across Europe. Members of the Task Group will consider what guidance and direction is of value to industry members and their customers going forward.

Euralarm members and other stakeholders and interested parties are invited to participate in the open forum, while the Workshop is for Euralarm members only.

More details about the Workshop can soon be found on the Euralarm website. Further information on the forum is available on the BSIA’s website.