Mobile phones have evolved over the years from being just a device to make a call when on-the-go to being the center of communication with its popular SMS (short messaging service), mobile email and MMS (multi-media messaging service) capabilities. However, with such a wide acceptance of such services comes the rising concern of data security.
With mobile phone theft at an all time high, it is imperative that users deploy security measures to ensure their mobile phone and the data stored in it does not fall into the wrong hands.
“Today the mobile phone is obviously not only a phone, it’s also your phonebook, camera, calendar, email...we lose phones all the time- this is a very real, very big problem,” said Darius Cheung, CEO, TenCube Pte.Ltd.
TenCube, a Singapore based security solutions provider, has unveiled a new mobile security service designed to protect both mobile phone handsets and their data.
WaveSecure, a web based application, allows users to remotely lock the phone in the event that it gets misplaced, making it useless to anyone who finds it. Once it is remotely locked, the screen shows a message that says that the phone is lost followed by details on how to contact the owner. The phone will remain locked even if the SIM card is changed or the phone is restarted.
If a new SIM card is inserted into the mobile phone, WaveSecure will report back to the phone’s rightful user of the change and any phone calls or messages that are sent, assisting the user in tracking down the phone.
SDA Asia understands that once WaveSecure customers sign up for the service online; they can start backing up their phone data to its online server. New messages, contacts and photos will also be backed up automatically as they are created which allows users to restore their data should they misplace their phone. This feature can also be used seamlessly to migrate data from an existing old phone to a new one. Backup can occur over several networks including WI-FI, GPRS, 3G and HSDPA. All private data contained in the device can also be deleted upon request.
The technology behind this innovation is such that the software communicates with the WaveSecure website using a combination of wireless internet, GPRS/3G and encrypted SMS tools.
Cheung told reporters at the product launch of WaveSecure last Thursday that although it was initially slated for launch in 2006, TenCube decided to extend the timeline for another six months because they wanted to enhance the product further so that it will be able to support a wider range of mobile phones.
WaveSecure is currently only available in Singapore on a three-month trial by invitation basis
The application runs on Symbian v7, v8,v9, Windows Pocket PC 2003, Smartphone 2003 and Mobile 5.0 platforms and supports a slew of Nokia, O2, Dopod, Sony Ericsson, HP and Motorola, Samsung, BenQ, Lenovo, Palm and Panasonic mobiles and smartphones.
According to Cheung, only the consumer edition of WaveSecure is available for trial at the moment. The enterprise edition will only be available in October 2007.
“The WaveSecure Enterprise Edition is catered for CIO, CSO and IT Administrators. Its 3 key features are Admin Console that provides a single point of remote control to manage devices and data security, Policy Engine that allows definition, deployment and over-the-air enforcement of security policies for multiple devices and Reporting Tools that help enterprises understand mobile usage and thus better manage their mobility strategy, while satisfying key regulatory compliance needs such as Sarbanes Oxley (SOX),” Cheung told SDA Asia.
TenCube declined to comment on how much WaveSecure will be available for and which are the subsequent Asian countries it will be targeting. Cheung did however tell SDA Asia that they expect to extend their coverage to more than 10 major countries in the next twelve months.
TenCube currently provides mobile security to local Singapore corporations and the Singapore government. Its customers currently include IT security organisations such as the Singapore Polica Force and the Center for Strategic IT. |
