Cellcrypt Teams Up with Verizon
Cellcrypt has signed an agreement with Verizon which will allow the companies to jointly market Cellcrypt's mobile voice-encryption solution to military, intelligence, and civilian agencies.
The service is aimed at helping government information technology departments manage the expanding use of mobile devices, address the potential risks associated with the interception of sensitive voice communications, and provide a tool to combat cyberattacks on critical national infrastructures.
"The threats posed by cyberattacks are real and increasingly focused on U.S. national security interests," said Janet Schijns, vice president of vertical solutions, Verizon Enterprise Solutions, in a statement. "By leveraging our combined strengths, Verizon and Cellcrypt will provide government agencies with an easy-to-deploy and interoperable mobile voice-encryption solution designed to maintain the security and integrity of sensitive communications."
Currently being tested with several government agencies, the yet-to-be-named cobranded service will be available for sale this fall. When launched, the Verizon-Cellcrypt service will be supported on smartphones and tablets running on Android, BlackBerry, and iOS mobile operating systems. The downloadable software application, which supports federal information processing standard 140-2, will work across cellular, Wi-Fi, and satellite networks, including Verizon's wireless networks. FIPS 140-2, created by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, is a U.S. government computer-security standard used to accredit cryptographic hardware and software.
"As a matter of national security, military and government personnel must be able to communicate sensitive information over their mobile phones, and it is imperative that these conversations be protected from interception," said Kathleen Peters, Cellcrypt's general manager of the Americas and vice president of business development, in a statement. "The combination of our world-class encryption solution and Verizon's networks will enable both companies to help strengthen the government's ability to effectively combat cybersecurity threats."