Protected Mobility, a Virginia-based mobile security company, announced the release of ProtectedSMS™ for Android smartphones today, a handset-to-handset solution enabling mobile users to exchange secure, encrypted text messages with individuals who have installed the software. This adds to an existing solution that was already available for BlackBerry smartphones and allows BlackBerry and Android to exchange messages.
The software does not require a subscription through a third-party security gateway and works across all networks and carriers. ProtectedSMS installs in seconds and is as easy to use as sending a text message.
The company says that current security gaps make text messages vulnerable to interception, spoofing (changing sender ID) and modification. These risks pose a significant threat for professionals engaged in government, law enforcement and corporate activities where security is critical for protecting confidential information.
To address the needs of law enforcement, government and corporate professionals who require secure and convenient message protection, ProtectedSMS utilizes AES 256 FIPS 140-2 compliant encryption.
Just four months after the initial launch of its product, Protected Mobility says it has pilots underway with first responder, law enforcement and defense agencies in the government sector, and with leading financial services and healthcare companies in the commercial sector. These enterprises leverage the dual capabilities provided by ProtectedSMS to both confirm identity (trusted source) and protect message content (encryption) in a manner transparent to the user.
Individual licenses are $49.95 per user and enterprise licensing is available as well. The company says that an iPhone version of ProtectedSMS will be available later in Q2 of this year along with tablet and iPad versions.