14 DAY TRIAL // A store published by Wired with some sketchy numbers about iMessage Spam rise woke up BlackBerry's PR team. The Canadians have spotted the perfect opportunity to trash Apple's own messaging system and promote their own as a superior alternative.
In a blog post, BlackBerry's head of product and brand marketing, Jeff Gadway, lists the top five reasons why BBM is not vulnerable to spam the way iMessage is.
Although Wired's report did not explain their numbers, they have said that iMessage now accounts for 30 percent of all mobile spam messages. BlackBerry's guy goes on citing the very same report, saying that iMessage accounts are very easy to spam because they work on computers, iPads and iPhones. As long as the spammer creates a new email account he can jump on a Mac and send automated spam iMessages to a large database of users with just a few lines of code.
The worse thing the Wired report mentioned is that a spammer not only sends unsolicited messages, but they can verify whether the text message has been delivered and when the recipient reads it.
Jeff Gadway believes that IT managers have even gone so far as turning off iMessage service on company phones so they would not be targeted by spammers.
However, he suggests that an easier way would be to replace iMessage with a much secure service like BlackBerry's BBM.
His first reason is related to BBM's architecture. The service has protected so far over 85 million users against spammers. iMessage works by using your email address and phone number and if someone has got your Apple ID, they can spam you indefinitely. BBM, on the other hand, only accepts messages from someone you accept. There's no way to get spammed unless you agree to add someone as a contact in the first place.
BBM also gives users control over their contacts list. If the sender is not a verified contact, there's no exchange of messages, hence no spam is received.
BlackBerry Messaging works as a secure environment so nobody can see what is being transmitted or received because the network is not vulnerable to hacking or spying. In that regards, iMessage is just as secure. Apple made that clear in the first place.
Another reason listed by Gadway is related to the way BBM treats an already received spam. If you do get an unwanted ad, you only need to block the person or contact. Again, this is possible with iMessage.
And last, BBM's anti-spam features work on any platform. Although late to the game when compared to WhatsApp or other similar messaging services, BlackBerry is now covering all big mobile operating systems: BlackBerry, iOS, Windows Phone and Android. In that regards, Apple's iMessage only works on iOS, but the big plus in the Cupertino guy's favor is that the platform can also be accessed and used on a Mac.