Ford to Ditch 9300 BlackBerrys for iPhones

[onehandle]

Ford Motor Co. (F) is deploying iPhones for corporate use to employees worldwide, scoring a win for Apple Inc. (AAPL) as it seeks to lure more corporate customers.

The second largest U.S. automaker will replace BlackBerry Ltd. (BBRY)’s smartphones with iPhones for about 3,300 workers by the end of this year, Sara Tatchio, a Ford spokeswoman, said yesterday in an interview. About 6,000 more employees will receive iPhones over the next two years, replacing flip phones, she said. Ford is hiring a mobile technology analyst whose main focus will be to oversee the “global deployment of corporate iPhones,” the company said in an online job posting.

Apple is pursuing a bigger slice of the corporate market for smartphone and tablet users and said this month it will work with International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) to create business software for iPhones and iPads. The pair put aside a three-decade-old rivalry in a move that helps Cupertino, California-based Apple cater to an increasingly mobile workforce. The deal also helps Armonk, New York-based IBM play catch-up to technology giants including Apple that were quicker to seize on a boom in mobile computing.

“We are going to get everyone on iPhones,” Tatchio said. “It meets the overall needs of the employees because it is able to serve both our business needs in a secure way and the needs we have in our personal lives with a single device.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-29/ford-plans-iphones-for-global-employees-job-posting-says.html

Canadian BlackBerry is expected to be bought and shut down in 2015. Who will end up with their patents?

[frylock]

1. iphone is the absolutely worst device on an enterprise network..

I can't even count the amount of times I've had to unlock someone's account because the iphone will prompt you ONCE after changing your password. After that it attempts to authenticate with the expired credentials over and over and over and over.

[onehandle]

4. I guess the thousands of companies, adding millions of iPhones each year are confused.

And then there's this...

Apple and IBM Forge Global Partnership to Transform Enterprise Mobility

CUPERTINO, California and ARMONK, New York—July 15, 2014—Apple® and IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced an exclusive partnership that teams the market-leading strengths of each company to transform enterprise mobility through a new class of business apps—bringing IBM’s big data and analytics capabilities to iPhone® and iPad®.

The landmark partnership aims to redefine the way work will get done, address key industry mobility challenges and spark true mobile-led business change—grounded in four core capabilities:
a new class of more than 100 industry-specific enterprise solutions including native apps, developed exclusively from the ground up, for iPhone and iPad; unique IBM cloud services optimized for iOS, including device management, security, analytics and mobile integration; new AppleCare® service and support offering tailored to the needs of the enterprise; and new packaged offerings from IBM for device activation, supply and management.

https://www.apple.com/pr/library/2014/07/15Apple-and-IBM-Forge-Global-Partnership-to-Transform-Enterprise-Mobility.html

[frylock]

9. we all know that executives make the right decisions 100% of the time

[Atman]

7. What a crock of bullshit. But hey, that's your opinion.

I respect it. Some people drove a Ford Pinto once so now they hate all American cars forever. But I do believe you can actually count to two or three...the real number of times "countless" people have called you for help unlocking their iPhones.

[frylock]

8. why the fuck do you have to take this to a personal level?

you don't know fuckall about what I do. what conceivable reason would I have to lie about something like that?

[Atman]

13. I can't possibly be lying.

I'm only responding to your ridiculous story about the "countless" people who can't even unlock their iPhones. Who are these people, your in-laws' grandparents or something?

[frylock]

15. it goes a little something like this..

end user: Hi, I think my account is locked.
me: mkay, let's take a look. (opens up Lockout Status tool) hmmm.. I see you changed your password this morning.
end user: that's right.
me: did you change your password on your iPhone?
end user: ummmm no.
me: did your iPhone PROMPT you for your password?
end user: I think maybe once. I don't know.
me: okay, what's happening is that your iPhone is attempting to authenticate to the Exchange server using your expired credentials. Here, let me unlock your account, and I'll walk you through the process of changing your password on your iPhone.
end user: okay, thanks!
me: no problem. just remember the next time you change your password to change it on your iPhone as well.
end user: thanks, will do.

now, on my Android device, if I fail to provide my new password, it will continue to prompt me for my new password until I provide it. it won't just continue to attempt to authenticate with the expired credentials, fail, and lock out user accounts. Maybe it's something on our Exchange server that is preventing IOS from doing the same. I don't know. All I know is I get these calls frequently. last one was on Tuesday.

[Atman]

17. Oh...so I count ONE iPhone user trying to access MS Exchange.

That's "countless?" And MS Exchange is part of the puzzle? HORRORS. It must be the iPhone.

[frylock]

18. i guess i should provide a log of my calls to satisfy you..

the "last one" would imply that there were other calls prior to the "last one." are you an iPhone sales rep? why the extreme butthurt?

[tammywammy]

10. The company I work for is doing the switch to iPhones from BB

That can't be a big common issue, and no one I know that's been converted has mentioned that as an issue. This is a Fortune 100 company, just a FYI not a little mom & pop.

Edited to add: not that I disbelieve you, just maybe it's more of an issue with your company versus others.

[frylock]

16. maybe it's a setting on the Exchange server..

I'm not the Exchange admin, so I don't know. What I do know is that my Android device does not continue to attempt to authenticate to the server with expired credentials. it will nag you for the correct password.

[IDemo]

2. They may want to reconsider

Hidden network packet sniffer in MILLIONS of iPhones, iPads – expert

An analysis of Apple's iOS operating system by a security expert has revealed various tools in the software that could be used for surveillance if one were so inclined.

Jonathan Zdziarski concluded that the vast majority of iThing owners are unaware of lax mechanisms protecting their data.

Data forensics expert and author Zdziarski wrote an academic paper on his findings in March, and gave a related talk [PDF mirror] at the Hackers On Planet Earth (HOPE X) conference in New York on Friday.

<>

This data includes a copy of the user's address book, stored photos, the voicemail database and audio files, any accounts configured on the device such as iCloud, Facebook or Twitter, a cache of screenshots, keystrokes and the device's clipboard, GPS data, and – on iOS 7 – metadata disk sparseimage of the iOS file system.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/07/21/ios_firmware_contains_packet_sniffer_and_host_of_secret_spying_tools/

[onehandle]

6. New Android 'Fake ID' flaw empowers stealthy new class of super-malware

[IMG][/IMG]

A new Android design error discovered by Bluebox Security allows malicious apps to grab extensive control over a user's device without asking for any special permissions at installation. The problem affects virtually all Android phones sold since 2010.

Bluebox calls the flaw "Fake ID" because it allows malware apps to pass fake credentials to Android, which fails to properly verify the app's cryptographic signature. Instead, Android grants the rogue app all of the access permissions of whatever legitimate app the malware claims to be.

This is particularly serious because Google has granted a variety of trusted apps in Android broad permissions; by pretending to be one of these trusted apps, malware can can fool users into thinking that they are installing an app that doesn't need any special permissions, then trick the system into giving it essentially full control of the device, with access to the user's financial data, contacts and other private information, even data stored in the cloud.

Bluebox said it disclosed the flaw to Google three months ago. The company's chief technology officer Jeff Forristal will detail how it was found and how it works in a presentation at BlackHat USA 2014, a security conference being held next week in Las Vegas.

http://appleinsider.com/articles/14/07/29/new-android-fake-id-flaw-empowers-stealthy-new-class-of-super-malware-

[IDemo]

11. Precisely why no Android or iOS device will be used in this house

Non-apped flip phones for me. Orders of magnitude less expensive to buy and operate, without the absurd security issues.

[Atman]

14. 1 in 10 Android apps are malware...

I'm happy with my iPhone.

http://www.net-security.org/malware_news.php?id=2820

[Jenoch]

3. I did not realize anyone other than President Obama was still using a Blackberry.

[onehandle]

5. I have a friend that says she's going to buy 5 more of her model when BlackBerry goes down.

For when they wear out. She loves that thing.

[snooper2]

12. cool, now they need to get their telecom service from where I work, we have cool apps :)