Boeing, the popular aerospace company, has unveiled its ‘Black’ spy phone that deletes all its call and message data if any unauthorized attempt is made to crack it open.
The smartphone is targeted towards privacy-sensitive customers who want to hide below the radar of the growing surveillance of mobile communications. Boeing which already runs communications for Air Force One aircraft is pitching the device at government officials and their contractors.
According to reports the smartphone runs on Google Inc’s Android operating system. It has a 5.2-by-2.7-inch body and has dual-SIM support. The phone can operate on GSM, WCDMA, and LTE frequency bands and offers Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity. Boeing’s website adds that the phone can be configured to connect with biometric sensors or satellites.
Boeing spokeswoman, Rebecca Yeamans said, “The company has been developing the phone for 36 months. We saw a need for our customers in a certain market space that Boeing could meet with its technology expertise.”
Boeing had tried to keep the device a secret, but the details emerged by the regulatory filings published by the FCC.
According to the letter, any attempt to break open Boeing’s Black phone would “trigger functions that would delete the data and software contained within the device and make the device inoperable. Any attempted servicing or replacing of parts would destroy the product.”
“Boeing has primarily developed its Black phone for government agencies and their contractors to ensure that the data and voice communications undertaken by their respective employees are transmitted and stored in a highly secure manner,” Boeing said in a letter requesting confidential treatment of the device through the Communications Regulator’s review process.
Source: Boeing