MyMobiSafe.com Official Mobile Security Blog
This blog is managed/edited by Eric Everson, Founder of MyMobiSafe.com. The purpose of this blog is to discuss common threats and solutions that exist within the mobile community.
Thank you for taking the time to review my blog, I am Eric Everson the founder of MyMobiSafe.com. In addition to my duties at MyMobiSafe, LLC I am also a graduate student of software engineering. As a mobile security expert, I am glad to answer any questions you may have on the topic: EricEverson@Hotmail.com
Tuesday 8 July 2008, 5:43 PM
Mobile Open Source: A Torrent of Implication
Mobile Open Source: A Torrent of Implication
Author: Eric Everson, Founder MyMobiSafe.com
There is a change working its way through the wireless industry that is fraught with the dynamics of a digital revolution. The buzz word “Open Source” has been a skirting temptation of the wireless industry for years, but only now are words becoming actions.
I credit our beloved friends over at Google for throwing the gasoline into the fire with their open source Android Operating System. Since that pivotal moment many Operating System (OS) providers have pledged an allegiance to the open source movement. Most recently Nokia has announced that the Symbian OS is destined to an open source fate.
Historically a significant degree of industrial isolation has created islands of innovation throughout the wireless industry. Since the beginning, cell phone manufactures have opted to employ their proprietary Mobile Operating Systems (pMOPS) creating little latitude for third party developers. Additionally this past trend has created gaping holes of incompatibility between handsets. The industry’s move towards open source is however breaking down such barriers of isolation creating the conditions for a surge of development.
Potentially in no other area than the development of a Universal Mobile Torrent (UMT) does this carry a greater short term impact. The phrase UMT still implies a fabled vision of a torrent application capable of connecting all cell phones. Nonetheless, the move towards open source bodes well for UMT architectures as developers will no longer be limited by the traditional confines of pMOPS. Additionally, an industry wide leap towards open source carries the potential of mitigating the ongoing research of deploying agent-oriented designs into torrent platforms to bypass constraints created by existing pMOPS.
UMT’s are but one aspect of development (the one which I feel offers the most significant impact in mobile security at the handset level) while many angles of third party development will also open like flood gates. A paradigm shift of open source MOPS threatens the pMOP tradition of extensive licensing fees against developer while it stands to create a free market seasoned for innovation. A move to open source within the wireless industry could take us from a plane of limited content to a terrain full of fresh developments. In the end the move towards mobile open source offers a torrent of implication.
Cheers,
MobileTech
Eric Everson, Founder
MyMobiSafe.com
Tuesday 8 July 2008, 3:33 AM
WinMo Handsets Get Facebook: Shhh Don’t Tell Your Boss!
WinMo Handsets Get Facebook: Shhh Don’t Tell Your Boss!
Eric Everson, Founder MyMobiSafe.com
For those whose lives have come to revolve around their social networking it would seem that Facebook recently got a new third party Windows Mobile (WinMo) app. This new third party app comes courteous of http://m.faceofmobile.com/. If you have been holding onto your WinMo handset in hopes that you could soon connect to Facebook just like the iPhone and Crackberry users then your day has come.
From what I’ve seen this mobile app is pretty cool (except for having to search each individual friend for a status). This seems like a safe app that many will enjoy. Third party mobile applications are sprouting up all over the place, which means that cell phone users must continue to be weary of what kind of content they are downloading. As a mobile security expert, I must contend that the easiest way into your handset is through the content you download into it.
For mobile hackers, planting malware into their mobile applications is the easiest way to ignite the wildfire spread they are looking for. These unassuming vulnerabilities is exactly what has incited us to start working on The Safe List at MyMobiSafe.com. This is a MyMobiSafe site feature that we will unveil soon, that is being implemented to curb the problems associated with unverified mobile content.
For those who enjoy the mobile lifestyle that cell phones afford, the FriendMobilizer (address above) may be exactly what your WinMo phone needs to keep you connected. For the others that just like to use their handset to escape from the monotony in the workplace, this new development may help you bide your time too. :P
Cheers,
MobileTech
Eric Everson, Founder
MyMobiSafe.com
Tuesday 8 July 2008, 12:41 AM
Nokia and Open Source Symbian
Nokia and Open Source Symbian
By: Eric Everson, Founder MyMobiSafe.com
So Nokia picked up the exclusive rights to the Symbian OS recently at a relative bargain (considering the licensing fees that Nokia can now save). But as many of the Nokia employees are likely wondering too… what’s next?
Nokia has already entered Symbian as an open source Mobile Operating System (MOPS), so what does that mean for cell phone users? With rumors circulating that the impending G-Phone is being delayed are Symbian users going to have to tread the untamed water of being the first deployed open source MOPS on the market? Interestingly as a Finnish company, Nokia shares the patriotic soil of Linus Torvalds “the Godfather of Open Source.” Perhaps Nokia would be best served by hiring Mr. Torvalds for a few “what’s next” pointers.
As an industry we are admittedly in the midst of change as the proprietary OS is being left behind in favor of open source. The problem however is that this migration is without precedent within the history of OS development. In so many cases the lessons learned in the sister industry of computers applies directly to the mobile side too. With that said, while open source has its place in the computer-based OS industry, let’s not forget where 90% of the market share resides. My question then becomes, why do we think that the fate of mobile open source is any less destined to a similar fate as the computer-based sister industry.
As has been proven in the past, it only takes one company to develop the right OS and all of a sudden the OS market share will be swallowed in whole too. Not to be pessimistic, but in the end open source platforms lack a primary motivation in development… capital.
Has Nokia made the right move by turning Symbian into an open source MOPS? It may be a decision that will be proven in time, but as for now it represents a major stepping stone in the pursuit of Universal Mobile Torrent (UMT) architecture.
Cheers,
MobileTech
Eric Everson, Founder
MyMobiSafe.com
Thursday 3 July 2008, 10:10 PM
Mobile Speed Demon: Wireless Surpasses Landline - AT&T Mobility
Mobile Speed Demon: Wireless Surpasses Landline
Author: Eric Everson, Founder MyMobiSafe.com
As I look around my house and throughout my network of friends, I instantly realize that there is one thing that we all share… we have all scrapped our landline phones. As millions have discovered, the dual billing of landline and mobile services has become obsolete in the strides of quality that wireless service has seen. Add to that the compounding proofs that computers are steadily being replaced by handheld mobile devices and the recent “20 megabits per second” announcement by my old comrade Ralph de la Vega of AT&T Mobility. It seems that in the battle for technology supremacy mobile is carving out a solid future.
Having worked in broadband engineering before going mobile myself, that recent announcement by Ralph de la Vega resonates with me. As Fortune.com recently shared, “AT&T's mobility chief Ralph de la Vega says the company will deliver speeds "exceeding 20 megabits per second" sometime in 2009.” Considering that USA Today article of 2007 which suggested that, the median U.S. download speed is about 1.97 megabits per second the promise of 20 megabits per second bodes well for U.S. high-speed Internet connections.
Having been in broadband it is important to note that broadband speed is a function of network capacity above all else. In essence the more capacity a network offers, the more speed it can deliver. With that said “speed” then permits better Internet applications such as social networking, gaming, and video streaming. If my Nostradamus-like senses are intact, I do predict handhelds replacing traditional computers in the foreseeable future.
With security always on my mind, the combination of promised speed and the developments in the way of open source mobile applications are dually carving out the niche of mobile security as a fundamental necessity moving forward.
Your mobile security guru,
Eric Everson
Eric Everson, Founder MyMobiSafe.com
Thursday 26 June 2008, 12:47 AM
Driving Mobile Security: On Content
Driving Mobile Security: On Content
By: Eric Everson, Founder MyMobiSafe.com
By now many have heard the industry news that MyMobiSafe.com has stopped adding new customers. While this is in fact true, it is not a reflection of our ailing business by any means. As reported, our change has everything to do with driving industry innovation as a small company. It seems to me that what the new strategy of MyMobiSafe is just as much a reflection on the industry of tomorrow as it is a milestone of company history.
The reality of mobile security is that there are some major changes that will have a grave impact on who survives this industry into the future. As so many (MyMobiSafe included) have been focused on the delivery issues inherent in mobile security the content front has continued to face unparalleled issues in the way of malware and piracy. While an industry giant might increase their offerings, we have made a strategic decision to embrace the agility of our small company in this dynamic move forward.
The mobile security industry has become littered with “me too products” touting their superiority which unfortunately is more of a marketing rouse than a software engineering reality. Whether a small company or a multinational corporation, we believe that the emerging face of the industry will be concentrated at the content level opposed to the founding methods which are largely concentrated in delivery.
Our change in direction is not to suggest that handset mobile security solutions are going to be obsolete, however as a smaller company we are forced to migrate in the direction that is driving our business financially. With mobile application developers facing such a security gap in the way of content protections, that is where we feel that MyMobiSafe will continue to make the biggest industry impact. The reality is that the industry is evolving and as we shift gears, we are doing it in a way that will continue to drive mobile security for cell phone users.
Your friend in mobile security,
Eric E
Eric Everson, Founder
MyMobiSafe.com
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