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According to today's Bild-online, Germany's Minister for Home Affairs, Hans-Peter Friedrich (54, CSU), has banned all iphones, smartphones and blackberries at his ministry due to 'grave' security concerns. His ministerial high level personnel has now to use HTC cell phones with a special encryption software, engineered and approved by the German Federal Agency for IT-Security (BIS).
Reasons: The servers for the 'smart' phones are located in the United States, and 'sensitive' info might be relayed to 'unauthorized' people.
OK, what comes next from Friedrich, the 'security guy' ?
Well, he even recommended that all the other federal ministries should follow suit with banning 'smart' phones for their 'elevated' staff.
Is Merkel really inclined to give up 'her' blackberry, iphone or ipad because of Friedrich's risk evalutation. Or, it is just Friedrich's paranoia that some German internal bits of information will be scooped by the CIA or NSA?
Btw, doesn't Pres. Obama have a blackberry as well?
Let's hope that DHS and/or Secret Service have provided same encryption software like the German BIS did for its domestic home affairs' ministry!
Besides mostly bla-bla talk on smart phones, even by staff with elevated responsibility level, Friedrich really believes in this 'security gap'.
OK, the former chief of the former GDR state security ministry, Mielke, had more security concerns about the overall loyalty of the population then. LOL
In comparison with Mielke, Friedrich makes a lot of noise and hot air with his ban.
