Tag: smartphone security

Report shows that consumers favor the convenience of mobile commerce

BuzzCity, a global mobile advertising network, has released a new report that highlights the growing popularity of mobile commerce. Many consumers have become interested in using their smartphones and tablets to shop online. The reason this is becoming attractive to consumers is because of the convenience that mobile commerce represents. According to BuzzCity, convenience is one of the factors influencing the interest consumers have in mobile shopping.

More people are expecting to spend their money through mobile devices

The report from BuzzCity shows that one in five consumers expected that more than have of their spending will come through a mobile device of some kind. Consumers appear to favor small purchases over larger ones. Approximately 18% of consumers noted that the variety of products available to them through mobile commerce is also a reason that encourages them to make purchases through a mobile device. The fact that they can do this shopping at any time and wherever they may be is one of the most attractive aspects of mobile commerce for consumers.

Consumers favor mobile websites over those that are not optimized for mobile viewing

According to the report, 19% of consumers said that they would not use retail websites that are not optimized to be viewed on mobile devices. These sites offer a poor shopping experience, making it difficult for consumers to make purchases with their smartphones or tablets. Notably, tablets are becoming a very attractive option for those interested in mobile commerce because these devices have larger screens that make the shopping experience more enjoyable.

Consumers remain concerned about the security of their personal information while using mobile commerce platforms

While consumers are showing more interest in mobile commerce, they are also concerned with the overall security of online platforms. Those participating in mobile shopping are not convinced that mobile commerce platforms are able to protect their financial information. Companies involved in the mobile commerce space are working to improve security in order to effectively protect consumers and new technology is being used to keep sensitive information safe.

The Canadian handset manufacturer had said it would step out of the country before revealing its customer data.

BlackBerry has now announced that it will be continuing its operations in Pakistan after the government of that country agreed to withdraw its demands that would require the company to hand over access to all its customer data.

The smartphone maker had developed a plan to leave Pakistan if the government continued the requirement.

Chief operating officer of BlackBerry, Marty Beard, explained in a blog post that the Pakistani government had now taken back its previous order to shut down the company’s services after the company and the government were able to complete “productive discussions”. The shutdown order was originally issued by the Pakistani government back in July 2015 when it said that “security reasons” were behind its decision. A few months later, on November 30, BlackBerry announced its decision to leave the country because it was unwilling to provide access to private customer information to the government.

The Pakistani government had demanded a vast range of backdoor access to BlackBerry customer information.

Among the information that the company would have been required to hand over included access to BBM chats and BlackBerry Enterprise Service (BES) emails. The smartphone manufacturer said this was “a compromise we are not willing to make.” The initial order from the government was that the company would have to shut down on November 30. However, that deadline was extended to December 30.

According to the company, there are up to 5,000 BES customers currently in Pakistan. It reported through Beard’s blog post that the authorities in Pakistan yielded to the resistance the company had placed against the demands for access to customer information and records. He wrote that “We are grateful to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority and the Pakistani government for accepting BlackBerry’s position that we cannot provide the content of our customers’ BES traffic, nor will we provide access to our BES servers.”

BlackBerry has not always been as driven or successful in the face of requirements from other national governments for access to user data. For example, in 2013, it gave access to the Indian government. It was able to view emails, BBM chats and internet service customer browsing habits. Reportedly, the company has also established data sharing agreements with the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Russia.