UK government agency clarifies stance on BlackBerry 10 security certification

I read an article earlier today over on The Guardian's website which stated that BlackBerry 10 would not be safe enough for government work here in the UK. I didn't believe what I was reading could be true, so I made a few phone calls to my buddies at BlackBerry to set the record straight.

The Guardian stated that the UK's Communications-Electronics Security Group (CESG) have not passed certification for BlackBerry 10. Well, that would be correct and here's why: CESG have recently changed the way that they operate and the new evaluation process is not a short one. In fact, it can take a good seven months or so. If that's the case then of course the CESG would not have said that Blackberry 10 is secure enough for the UK government and security agencies to use - BlackBerry 10 simply isn't old enough.

BlackBerry is working closely with the CESG here in Great Britain and considering that older BlackBerry software has been famous for its security features, I am more than confident that when the testing process is complete all will be fine.

Here's the official word from CESG on the matter:

"Discussions with BlackBerry are ongoing about the use of the BlackBerry 10 platform in government. We have not yet performed an evaluation of the security of that platform, but we expect to be issuing Platform Guidance in the summer. This will cover a number of platforms including Blackberry 10 (and the use of 'Balance'). We have a long standing security partnership with BlackBerry and this gives us confidence that the BlackBerry 10 platform is likely to represent a viable solution for UK Government." 

There you have it - BlackBerry 10 isn't certified for British government use yet. BlackBerry World is right around the corner, where it wouldn't be surprising to see a significant OS update with even more of the security features governments and large corporations need.