Cellcrypt hypes ultra-secure mobile calls

By Dave Nixon

UK stealth modemarket entrant, Cellcrypt, has begun touting an innovative encryption system that attempts to resolve a security dilemma most companies would rather avoid – insecure mobile phone calls.

Cellcrypt claim that governments and large companies in the financial sector have become progressively more anxious about the possibility of snooping on mobile phone calls of a private nature.

This may ensue either by breaking the encryption system used by GSM, which has been exposed to be achievable in some conditions, or more plainly by accessing the call once it has passed outside the radio base station and entered the network.

After a three year development, the company’s counter to the problem is a proprietary VoIP client for mobile phones and smartphones, Cellcrypt Mobile 3.2, that seemlessly encrypts traffic using RSA 2048 or AES 256-bit encryption.

The software presently only operates between mobile handsets using the same software on Nokia handsets, with landline support yet to be developed, but the company has a PBX system in the pipeline, and strategy for a client running on Blackberrys and Windows Mobile devices.

The PBX, planned for later in 2008, would make it feasible to receive encrypted calls on ordinary handsets located on the other side of the PBX.

The company was investigating licensing the client for third-parties, in addition to selling it as standalone software.

Cellcrypt stated that they would be keen on integration withCisco VoIP phones, an aspiration that could see the Cellcrypt software establish itself in becoming the new standard for VoIP-to-VoIP call security.

Anyone for whom mobile phone privacy is of the paramount importance will have to outlay £500 per client, with a minimum of two required for secure communications.

Cellcrypt said that the next edition of the Cellcrypt software would allow handset users to differentiate Cellcrypt contacts able to make secure calls, from those contacts lacking the Cellcrypt client.

This subject of GSM snooping isn’t scaremongering.

Up to date reports have recognized that the technology to crack open the encryption used by GSM may be bought for as little as $1,000, rendering it suspect where confidentiality is desired.