14 DAY TRIAL // Silent Circle isn’t such a big name in the smartphone industry, but the company has its well-defined user base thanks to the smartphones with enhanced security that it offers. The company develops mobile devices, software applications and communication management services for enterprise clients.
Silent Circle’s most popular product is the Blackphone 2, which is “the world’s first smartphone built from the ground up to be private by design”. The phone runs Silent OS based on Google’s Android operating system, but enhanced with multiple privacy features and tools to keep information safe.
On January 16, Silent Circle warned customers to avoid purchasing the Blackphone 2 from eBay or other online retail websites. The company is trying to brick non-genuine Blackphone units by pushing out the Silent OS 3.0.8 update, according to Ars Technica. The update checks the phone’s IMEI to determine if it’s a genuine device.
The update has already started reaching a few users
Silent Circle is trying to stop the sales of unauthorized devices that have been manufactured as Blackphones, as the company stated. As you could imagine, these phones don’t offer the same protection as Blackphone units and put user privacy at risk.
Sellers on eBay and other similar websites currently offer the Blackphone 2 for up to $100 less than Silent Circle and other authorized sellers. Blackphones come free of bloatware and have features for creating separate modes for work and personal apps and data.
Moreover, users are able to adjust permissions for each individual app installed on their phones and decide on the level of data that applications can access. Silent Circle says it has the world’s fastest vulnerability management, as critical vulnerabilities are patched within 72 hours of detection or reporting. Blackphone 2 has a 5.5-inch Full HD display, 3GB of RAM, a 3,060mAh battery and a 13MP rear camera. It runs an octa-core Snapdragon 615 processor.