BlackBerry is betting on security as it seeks to stave off new competitors in the enterprise mobile space.
The company, which recently got some bad news in the form of an alliance between Apple and IBM, is boosting its security credentials through the acquisition of Secusmart GmbH, a German company that specializes in high-security data and voice encryption. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
"The acquisition of Secusmart underscores our focus on addressing growing security costs and threats ranging from individual privacy to national security. This acquisition bolsters our security solutions with leading voice and data encryption and antieavesdropping technologies, and furthers BlackBerry's security leadership in end-to-end mobile solutions," BlackBerry Executive Chairman and CEO John Chen said in a press release.
Chen, who was named BlackBerry's CEO last November, is trying to reinvent the company and gain back a bigger share of the global smartphone market. To improve his company's prospects, Chen is leveraging its strengths -- mobile security and enterprise apps.
BlackBerry and Secusmart have been working together since 2009. Secusmart's encryption technology was integrated into the BlackBerry 10 operating system, which runs on the BlackBerry Z30, BlackBerry Z10 and the BlackBerry Q10. Secusmart's voice- and data-encryption solutions have also been used to protect the landline phones of large companies and government agencies.
The two companies collaborated on the SecuSuite for BlackBerry 10 solution. Last year, the technology was chosen by the country's Federal Office for Information Security for protecting the communications of its highest-ranking officials. The two companies have also provided German government agencies and leaders with BlackBerry phones equipped with Secusmart encryption solutions. This includes Angela Merkel, whose mobile phone was allegedly tapped by the U.S. National Security Agency.
Secusmart Managing Director Hans-Christoph Quelle said that the products of the collaboration between his company and BlackBerry meet the security standards of NATO for secure communications. BlackBerry claims that its customers include all of the member countries of the G7, and the biggest companies in legal, pharmaceutical, auto manufacturing and oil and gas. It is also the only mobile company that has Full Operational Capacity (FOC) clearance for use on the networks of the U.S. Department of Defense.
