The NSA is capable of recording 100 per cent of telephone calls, randomly or selectively from any mobile carrier.
National security across the world has become a major issue in recent times with the National Security Agency (NSA) collecting almost five billion records a day on the location of phones, according to documents released by Edward Snowden. The NSA is capable of recording 100 per cent of telephone calls, randomly or selectively from any mobile carrier. Anyone’s phone could be one of those intercepted, where your calls, text messages, and personal data is read and tracked.
Government agencies aside, the real threat to smartphones may be just outside your door. Novice and elite hackers as well as criminal gangs have become even more tech savvy in finding a way to enter into users’ mobile phones. Manufactures spend countless hours researching ways to safeguard the latest technologies, while simultaneously the latest hackers spend hours trying to undo it. The rise in mobile sales and use only further motivates their determination to break into phones.
To illustrate the rapid growth of smartphones, LG Electronics alone shipped 13.2 million units during 2013, an increase of 54 per cent from the previous year. Recent research has also shown how smartphone purchases in the UAE have helped push the average household spending on electronics to Dh4,875. A 62 per cent increase from Dh3,000 on the previous year. The survey by retailer Plug-Ins Electronix also revealed how 74 per cent of respondents plan to purchase a smartphone in the next six months, the fastest churn rates in the world. In Europe the average individual replaces their smartphone once every 18 months.
Though the public may remember the basic rules of security when using their home PC’s, they quickly forget that the same risks apply to their smartphones as well. Over the years we have seen a huge influx in the number of hackers targeting smartphones. These devices generally carry so much of our personal and financial information, to the point where many of us treat them like digital wallets — and hackers are finding it relatively easy to find their way to them via unauthorised access.
As the Middle East begins to grow significantly and prepares to welcome the world for Expo 2020 and the FIFA World Cup 2022, the threat is evident with a growing number of malware and spyware attacks, followed by smartphone and tablets facing physical hacking problems. Security is paramount and top priority for businesses and individuals. In consensus to that, LG announced during the Mobile World Congress in March, the Knock Code, a key feature in LG smartphone models, including G Pro 2, G2 mini, F Series and L Series.
The Knock Code, a ground breaking feature is a perfect match to today’s smartphone generation. It empowers consumers with security and convenience.
In a recent consumer research, majority of users check and unlock their devices between 100 and 150 times a day, LG was inspired to further enhance its KnockOn feature with a higher layer of security and convenience. KnockOn, which LG patented in 2008, was the perfect foundation to further develop Knock Code, which is unique in its ability to both wake and unlock the phone in one step, a clear time-saver for users.
The writer is the president of LG Electronics Gulf FZE. Views expressed by him are his own and do not reflect the newspaper’s policy.
