Big Brother Is Watching Your Blackberry

Big Brother Is Watching Your Blackberry

abcnews.go.com

Don't look now, but no matter where you go, you're connected. We -- or most of us, at least -- have opened our front doors to large corporations, hardware manufacturers, software firms and search engines. We have allowed them to rifle through our jacket pockets and handbags. And now they can do as they wish with us, or do the bidding of the powers-that-be -- in the form of a totalitarian government, for example.

(visit the link for the full news article)

This obviously comes as no surprise to anybody who purchases and uses such products regularly. But, I was relatively surprised to see this news story featured at ABCNews.com

In other words, it is not just the power of the manufacturers over the users of their devices that is growing as a result of tethered appliances -- indirectly the power of the state is also growing. They are able to put enough pressure on any manufacturer to force it to help out with monitoring or control of private individuals. Anyone who believes that large companies would not bend to the will of autocrats and dictators just needs to take a look at the situation in China, where search engines and Internet providers do exactly what the Chinese government tells them to do.

A dramatic example of Zittrain's thesis occurred recently in the United Arab Emirates. Wired magazine and The Register reported how the local Internet provider, Etisalat, sent out a software update to around 145,000 of their Blackberry customers. However, thanks to a software glitch that caused the battery power in all the affected Blackberrys to be drained, it was discovered that the software update also included surveillance software.

The spying part of the software was switched off -- but all it needed was a command from the Internet server and the Blackberrys would send e-mail and text messages in an encrypted form to an unknown recipient. IT experts believe the intended recipient was local security forces. To date, Etisalat has not made a statement in response to the allegations. The company's sole response has been a curt press release stating that the reason for the update was simply "to improve the service quality."
abcnews.go.com...

abcnews.go.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

I wonder if it would be easier just to make a list of things that Big Brother is not watching that belongs to us?

Seems like they got us cornered every way.

Well, that would explain why Blackberry implements a Proprietary E-Mail protocol rather than the decades old POP3 protocol and the almost as aged, 23-year old IMAP protocol.

Basically, Blackberry e-mail does not work with any Mail Server on the planet with the exception of one run by Blackberry. If you want your Blackberry to retrieve your Hotmail, Yahoo!, ISP, or other e-mail, you have to configure Blackberrry's Server to get that e-mail using common protocols, and your Blackberry then retrieves the e-mail from Blackberry's server. This allows Blackberry to play Man-In-The-Middle and intercept every single e-mail.

Anyone not using common, open protocols is up to no good. It's easy enough for an agency to take advantage of the POP3 and IMAP protocols to intercept e-mail, but when someone isn't even transparent about hiding what they are doing, then your privacy is clearly not your concern.

Originally posted by fraterormus
Well, that would explain why Blackberry implements a Proprietary E-Mail protocol rather than the decades old POP3 protocol and the almost as aged, 23-year old IMAP protocol.

Basically, Blackberry e-mail does not work with any Mail Server on the planet with the exception of one run by Blackberry. If you want your Blackberry to retrieve your Hotmail, Yahoo!, ISP, or other e-mail, you have to configure Blackberrry's Server to get that e-mail using common protocols, and your Blackberry then retrieves the e-mail from Blackberry's server. This allows Blackberry to play Man-In-The-Middle and intercept every single e-mail.

Anyone not using common, open protocols is up to no good. It's easy enough for an agency to take advantage of the POP3 and IMAP protocols to intercept e-mail, but when someone isn't even transparent about hiding what they are doing, then your privacy is clearly not your concern.

I appreciate this information. I do not own a Blackberry and wasn't aware of this "middle-man" working operations.

Originally posted by fraterormus
Well, that would explain why Blackberry implements a Proprietary E-Mail protocol rather than the decades old POP3 protocol and the almost as aged, 23-year old IMAP protocol.

Basically, Blackberry e-mail does not work with any Mail Server on the planet with the exception of one run by Blackberry. If you want your Blackberry to retrieve your Hotmail, Yahoo!, ISP, or other e-mail, you have to configure Blackberrry's Server to get that e-mail using common protocols, and your Blackberry then retrieves the e-mail from Blackberry's server. This allows Blackberry to play Man-In-The-Middle and intercept every single e-mail.

Anyone not using common, open protocols is up to no good. It's easy enough for an agency to take advantage of the POP3 and IMAP protocols to intercept e-mail, but when someone isn't even transparent about hiding what they are doing, then your privacy is clearly not your concern.

I appreciate this information. I do not own a Blackberry and wasn't aware of this "middle-man" working operations.

i wonder if that is just in reguards to the Blackberry but other PDA devices like the I Phone? Or maybe if it is just certain carriers that allow for it? i kinda wanted a blackberry but screw all that nonsense.

What gets me sick is the people that are out there that are completely apathetic to this stuff. They know it but they don't care. They just think that government is trying to keep them safe.

Originally posted by EarthQuake
i wonder if that is just in reguards to the Blackberry but other PDA devices like the I Phone? Or maybe if it is just certain carriers that allow for it? i kinda wanted a blackberry but screw all that nonsense.

Blackberry is the only one that I am aware of that exclusively uses Proprietary Mail Protocols. Palms do a similar thing by default if you have a Palm through Verizon, but through other carriers they utilize POP3 or IMAP for E-Mail (and even with Verizon, if you have the original CD-ROM, you can install the Palm Mail Client that can use standard POP3 or IMAP for E-Mail instead of using Verizon's service as a Middle-Man to get your E-Mail from other providers).

However, all Smartphones have the ability for the Service Provider to push Updates, and in the original article posted by the OP, that is what this was about...a pushed Update with Spyware installed. Many even have Kill-Switches that allow a Provider to stop Apps that you have purchased or installed that the provider deems "inappropriate".

Your phone should be considered your property, and you should be able to load whatever you want on it to do whatever you want it to do. You shouldn't be restricted to only those methods that your carrier/provider are willing to allow.

However, as these are Telco Providers, we already know where their servitude lies with the expanding provisions of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978, Emergency Powers Act of 1995, Patriot Act of 2001, Protect America Act of 2007, FISA Amendments Act of 2008, and the proposed Amendments in 2009 to the Stored Communications Act of 1986. If you don't think your Cellphone is being used by your government to monitor your activities then you haven't been paying attention to Telecommunications for the past 31 years. As Smartphones get smarter, so do their monitoring of your activities. Things like sound triangulation, GPS location, the ability to remotely enable the recording of voice and images, were just tips of the iceberg.

[edit on 27-7-2009 by fraterormus]

Your phone should be considered your property, and you should be able to load whatever you want on it to do whatever you want it to do. You shouldn't be restricted to only those methods that your carrier/provider are willing to allow.

thank you for the info. i have one question though, if your carrier is providing your phone with service, then wouldnt the carrier be entitled its right to imply restrictions on what you download, or really, what you do with the phone when you are using their service?

Originally posted by EarthQuake
thank you for the info. i have one question though, if your carrier is providing your phone with service, then wouldnt the carrier be entitled its right to imply restrictions on what you download, or really, what you do with the phone when you are using their service?

Well, that is the secret behind how companies can get away with these things that they do. They are providing a "SERVICE" not a "PRODUCT". This is more than just a difference in words, but a difference in Law and Liability. A physical object, such as a Cellphone isn't a Product if you market it as a Service. A Service allows for legal indemnification on part of the Service Provider. It allows ownership to reside with the Service Provider, not with the Purchaser who instead becomes a Leasee. As a Product allows for ownership, you can do with a Product you purchase as you wish, but a Service you purchase does not allow for ownership, and instead binds you contractually to a Terms of Service. A Terms of Service can give a Provider grossly wide-sweeping rights for which no law is necessary as this is a binding agreement that is entered by the Purchaser and falls under the realm of Contract Law. When you purchase a Product, there are no Terms other than those established at Purchase, whereas a Service has Terms that can be modified and changed at will by the Provider, so long as the Purchaser is notified in writing of these changes (although they still have no legal recourse to those changes and must accept them).

If you take notice, world+dog is trying to market themselves as Services for all of these above mentioned reasons. A Music CD is now a "Service". A Movie DVD is now a "Service". Even Automobiles are beginning to be marketed as "Services". Corporations want you to pay them money on their terms without the need to deliver, while remaining legally indemnified from lawsuits, or being regulated by Federal laws. Why make $100 one time per person when you can make $100 a month per person for as long as you want to milk them?

reply to post by fraterormus


Are all the things you're talking about concerning all cell phones, or just blackberries, Iphones, palms, etc ? I have just a regular cell phone (at least i think i do) do i have to worry about these things ?

reply to post by fraterormus


wow you put it like that no wonder the world is as screwed up as it is...and were all just going along with it.