The US National Security Agency can access user data from smartphones produced by all leading manufacturers, German weekly Spiegel reports, citing NSA documents it has seen which refer to Apple iPhones, BlackBerrys and the Google Android mobile OS. Data which can be tapped include contact lists, notes, location information and SMS traffic.

The documents state that the NSA has succeeded in cracking the proprietary BlackBerry mail system, whose success was partially based on its reputation for being very secure.

The material viewed by Spiegel suggests that spying on smartphones has not been a mass phenomenon. In some cases it has been targeted in an individually tailored manner without the smartphone companies` knowledge.

Telecompaper has reported on various companies selling mobile encryption technology, such as CellCrypt and TrustPort, and government contracts for presumably secure mobile devices.

Source: telecompaper.com

BDST: 1412 HRS, SEP 9, 2013
SMS/BSK