The New Secure Communications Realities for Governments
Posted: Monday, Mar 31

i 3 Table of Contents

The New Secure Communications Realities for Governments

The Eroding Trust in Consumer Messaging Apps

Consumer-grade messaging apps like Signal, WhatsApp and Telegram offer basic end-to-end encryption, effectively securing the content of messages. However, encryption alone is just one piece of a much larger secure communication puzzle. These platforms fall critically short in providing four essential guarantees for government and critical infrastructure entities:

  1. Identity Assurance
    Self-registration mechanisms of consumer apps introduce risks like identity spoofing and unauthorized access. Cybercriminals can exploit these open systems, further threatening sensitive operations with risks of fraud or infiltration.
  2. Human Error Protection
    When using the same app for personal and official communications it is very easy to accidentally message the wrong person. And when the available user list is anyone in the world the implications can be severe, and you have no way to undo the damage.
  3. Metadata Privacy
    Even though communications are encrypted, metadata remains exposed in consumer apps. Metadata—which reveals who is communicating, when, and for how long—is as vulnerable as the content itself. Such data can be harvested by adversaries to map connections and gain insights into classified operations.
  4. Control Over Data
    With consumer apps, organizations relinquish control of where and how their communications data is stored. Often, it resides on external overseas servers, creating potential gaps in jurisdictional and operational security.

In short, consumer apps are ill-equipped to meet the stringent demands required for sensitive communications in government and enterprise sectors.

Elevated Standards for Secure Communications

BlackBerry Secure Communications goes beyond encryption by addressing the critical gaps inherent in consumer-grade platforms. Purpose-built for governments, militaries, and regulated industries, it has robust safeguards that meet the highest security standards.

  1. Zero-Trust Identity Verification
    Unlike consumer applications, every user in a SecuSUITE system is explicitly verified and authorized on a continuous basis. This zero-trust approach prevents unauthorized individuals from infiltrating sensitive communications networks, eliminating risks tied to self-registration.
  2. Comprehensive Metadata Protection
    BlackBerry Secure Communications ensures metadata is encrypted and tunneled, making it invisible to any potential adversary. This level of protection creates a communications environment that not only encrypts conversations but also conceals the contextual data surrounding them.
  3. Sovereign Data Control
    BlackBerry Secure Communications offers tailored deployment models, ranging from on-premises systems to hybrid and sovereign cloud solutions, ensuring your data never leaves your jurisdiction. Governments and enterprises can maintain absolute sovereignty, free from third-party dependencies and foreign infrastructure risks.

Unparalleled Security with Seamless Collaboration

Implementing SecuSUITE delivers real-world advantages that align with the priorities of any security-focused organization:

  • Sovereign Control
    Governments maintain full operational ownership of their communications, ensuring that sensitive information is entirely within their control and unexposed to foreign entities.
  • Prevention of Espionage
    By encrypting conversations, messages, video, and even metadata, SecuSUITE eliminates risks of intercepting communications, protecting operations from both opportunistic hackers and sophisticated espionage campaigns.
  • Mitigating Impact of Human Errors
    Since your SecuSUITE system is under your control and only trusted people are part of it you cannot accidently include an outsider in your communications. Even if you select the wrong contact, it is still a trusted person. And SecuSUITE allows you to unsend the data shared by mistake with no time restrictions.
  • Operational Resilience
    Designed to withstand the most demanding environments, SecuSUITE ensures high availability during crisis events, safeguarding national defense and public safety operations.

Mission-Ready for the Most Sensitive Use Cases

From defense agencies to critical infrastructure providers, organizations using the BlackBerry Secure Communications solution experience significant improvements in security posture. For instance, systems can revoke access to unauthorized users instantly, ensuring secure communication even when mobile devices are compromised or lost.

As the digital and geopolitical landscapes grow increasingly volatile, relying on consumer apps for critical communications is not a gamble anyone can afford. Protect your organization’s operations, reputations, and national interests with BlackBerry Secure Communications.

David Wiseman
In his role as the Vice President of Secure Communications, David is a seasoned international public speaker, whose res ponsibilities include leading the Secure Government Communications business in the Americas and APAC. He specializes in applying technology to real life mission critical business systems with a focus in communications, security, and safety. David and his team support our customers in understanding how to secure their mobile communications from the most advanced adversaries, especially in complex and highly secure sectors such as defense and military, including NATO. David has been with BlackBerry for ten years, joining the organization in November 2014. David has 25+ years of experience in software, security, information management, mobility and communications at BlackBerry, IBM, SAP, Sybase, and the US Navy. His expertise in Secure Communications leads BlackBerry in the vision of securing a connected future you can trust, helping governments to augment and fortify digital defences to strengthen national security. David helped design the world’s first large-scale environmental geo-spatial database for NASA. He also helped design the software for one of the first shipboard radar data fusion systems for the US Navy.   At BlackBerry, David and his team have helped NATO and multiple global governments operating in challenging geo-political environments to establish trusted, secure communications channels from the battlefield to the boardroom – using military-grade software to ensure classified conversations and messages remain private. Education, Certifications, and Training Bachelor of Science, Computer Science – University of Mary Washington Master of Business Administration – University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
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