From the AEGIS e-Journal, Volume 6 Number 6, June 2003
mobile phones As our readers know, we consider the safety of information to be very important. You should shred anything that has writing on it (do you really want people to know your marketing plans, your vacation plans, or where you get your lunch?) that you should encrypt all e-mail, and that all telephone calls should be encrypted. Why then, are we not reviewing encrypted mobile phones? The answer is that if you need satellite communications you can get a system with data capability (encryption uses a lot of bandwidth, so if you were using Inmarsat, you couldn’t use a reasonably-priced Mini M system, but would have to go to a more-expensive M-4 system) and attach an encryptor like the L-3 Privatel (http://www.l-3com.com/cs-east/programs/infosec/privatel.htm). ÆGIS, June 2003 25 With a mobile phone you need GSM, since that is the most widely used technology, worldwide. Putting aside the issue that there are areas in which there is no GSM coverage (you will need to use an encrypted landline, or not talk), there are now four frequencies used: 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, and 1900 MHz. If you travel in Latin America you will need all four. In North America you will need 850 MHz and 1900 MHz, and in Europe and Asia and Australia you will need 900 MHz and 1800 MHz. The problem is that 850 MHz is relatively new, and there are no quad-band handsets, let alone encrypted quad-band handsets. Would you spend $2,500 (because they are so expensive they don’t sell many of them; because they don’t sell many they are very expensive) for a mobile phone that is, in essence, technologically outdated? Would you want to buy an encrypted handset for $2,500 and not be able to it in Bogotá? We wouldn’t. Would you spend $2,500 for a quad-band encrypted handset? Well, at that price some have estimated the demand worldwide to be between 20,000 units and 30,000 units. On the other hand, we have seen estimates that if the price dropped to the $600-$800 range the demand could be a million or more. Would you spend $600 for one? We would! Is it feasible to make an encrypted terminal at that price? You don’t need to develop the actual handset. You want to use an add-on to an existing handset, the way Nokia used the AMPS module on the 6190 (and still took a 3800 MAh battery!), or the way General Dynamics used the Tri-band Motorola Timeport in their Sectéra Secure Wireless Phone (http://63.226.32.24/sectera/gsm/index.html). This would reduce the handset portion to under $100. If a quad-band Timeport were available, or if the upcoming Motorola V-600 could take such a module, then we believe General Dynamics could change their marketing approach on the Sectéra from expensive government small quantity marketing to large quantity marketing for law enforcement and industry, and make a more-substantial profit on the lower-cost/larger run product. L-3 Communications could do the same thing with their encryption technology. Meanwhile, I suspect we will all have to content ourselves with using encryptors on landlines and satellite communications systems. 7. Free-Subscription/Unsubscription/Copyright Information •• ÆGIS e-journal is supported and maintained by voluntary efforts. This publication is owned, published, and copyright © 2003 by The LUBRINCO Group Ltd, Inc. and Financial Examinations and Evaluations, Inc. It is edited ÆGIS, June 2003 26 jointly by Richard Isaacs (RBIsaacs@lubrinco.com) and L. Burke Files (LBFiles@lubrinco.com). The LUBRINCO Group provides services in three high-threat areas, too specialized to be dealt-with in-house, that can adversely affect domestic and international bottom lines. • Protection of trade secrets and intellectual assets. o Anti-economic espionage. o OPSEC: The identification and protection of information that would give your competitors and adversaries an advantage. • International financial investigations and due diligence consulting. o Location and recovery of missing and hidden assets. o Establishing business relationships and strategic partnerships in Central and Eastern Europe, the offshore financial centers, Beijing and Shanghai, Central Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean. o Anti-money laundering and financial fraud requirements under the International Money Laundering Abatement and Anti-Terrorist Financing Act of 2003 and the EU Revised Money Laundering Directive of 2003. • Protection of management, staff, and families. o In the high-threat environments of Latin America, Africa, the Mid- East, and Southeast Asia. o When traveling and living overseas. o When transporting items of substantial value. LUBRINCO identifies and quantifies threats and vulnerabilities, and their associated risk, then manages the vulnerabilities so you can transfer or live with the residual risk. We prevent disastrous financial loss to your company, and physical harm to you, your family, and your staff. For information on The LUBRINCO Group and its services, or for the archive of all past issues of ÆGIS e-journal in PDF format, please go to http://www.lubrinco.com/. To sign up for a complimentary subscription to ÆGIS e-journal or the ÆGIS e- journal PDF notification list, go to http://lb.bcentral.com/ex/manage/subscriberprefs?customerid=7768 or send an email to ejournal@lubrinco.com. ÆGIS, June 2003 27 To subscribe to our AvantGo channel, go to http://avantgo.com/channels/_add_channel.pl?cha_id=1773 To be removed from the subscription list, follow the instructions on the mailing you received, or send an e-mail to ejournal@lubrinco.com. 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Article Title, from the June 2003 ÆGIS e-journal (© 2003 LUBRINCO & FEE), to be found at http://www.lubrinco.com/. ÆGIS e-journal is a forum for the exchange of information, ideas, operating styles, theories, and related topics for corporate managers who make decisions about threats typically outside the expertise available in-house, yet which have the potential to affect their company’s domestic and international bottom lines. Nothing appearing in ÆGIS e-journal should be construed as legal advice. The information provided is “general information,” not “specific advice.” The solution to any problem is highly dependent upon the precise facts involved. Thus, before making any reliance upon anything said here, you should consult with an appropriately skilled professional. Opinions ÆGIS, June 2003 28 expressed by contributors are not necessarily endorsed by the publisher, and may be presented to encourage a dialogue among subscribers. The publisher and any re-publisher cannot be held responsible for any loss incurred as a result of the application of any information published in ÆGIS e-journal. Please be safe, and be smart.