Google Phone The Next Hacker Romance?

Google Phone The Next Hacker Romance? By: Eric Everson, Founder MyMobiSafe.com

Rumors have been circulating all year about the 2008 debut of “The Google Phone” but Google has been calculated in sharing only bits of insight with every developing story. In a recent Cnet.com posting by Elinor Mills we learned “In addition to the ad-supported phone services bundling Google Maps, YouTube and Gmail, the operating system would be open to developers to build additional features.” The catch phrase in this news as a mobile security expert is “open to developers” which should strike up some level of anxiety.

Since October 1, 2007 mobile manufacturers such as Nokia, Motorola, Apple, and yes now even Google have announced intentions to open their handsets to third-party developers. As the founder of MyMobiSafe.com, I am actually all for the move to “unlock mobile” but it doesn’t take someone in my position to see the underlying threat that this is bringing to cell phone owners. As a result of the speed of technology rampant throughout the mobile manufacturing industry coupled with network level only security by service providers, cell phone security has been left in the hands of the handset owner.

While many of the emerging third-party developments will be pure and safe in nature, the poor state of security throughout the mobile industry will literally put millions at risk. There are already spyware and tracking programs available throughout the mobile industry, so opening to third-party will only further open the door for these programs and threats. As the iPhone became the overnight romance of the hacker community, the Google Phone is sure to attract attention of its own. Additionally, as mobile banking is emerging throughout the world financial markets, vulnerabilities in mobile security are also being targeted. As cell phone security has become the responsibility of the handset owner, Mobile Security Providers will play a pivotal role in providing a line of cellular defense.

I encourage your comments as cell phone owners; who should take the greatest level of responsibility to improve the state of mobile security? Are you fine with the current standard of buying your own mobile security solution, or should the manufacturers or service providers take a more proactive approach towards handset level security?

Your friend and mobile security guru, Eric Everson, Founder MyMobiSafe.com