BlackBerry Protect Beta: Enterprise Security in Your Hand
by Andrew Garcia
BlackBerry Protect
The beta of BlackBerry Protect can be installed on most new BlackBerryOS 5.0-enabled devices—I used a Bold 9700.
BlackBerry Protect Config
To get setup, I needed to input my BlackBerryID which is tied to an email address used with the device.
BackUp Options
From the device, I could configure what information I’d liked backed up to RIM’s servers. I could also set an ongoing backup schedule.
Protect Portal
Using my BlackBerryID, I could log into the web portal to manage the phone.
Device INformation
The portal displays what it knows about Protect-enabled devices registered to the account, showing PIN, phone number, device type, and backup status.
Portal Restore
From the portal, I could push down a restore job but only from the last backup taken.
Device Restore
From the device, I could choose recent backups stored in the cloud, pulling the information down to my device.
Locate
If enabled on the device during initial Protect setup, I could find the phone via the portal. IN this example, the phone was indoors, so wireless triangulation was used for location data instead of the GPS. The green star in the lower, 3D photo shows how off the detected position was from the true location.
Lock
From the portal, I could set a device lock password and push it out to the device.
Loud Ring
If I know the phone is around somewhere but can’t find it, I could use the portal to tell it to ring loudly. The device will ring, even if it is set to silent mode.
Message Display
I could use the portal to push out a message that will be displayed as wallpaper on the device, and is visible even if the device is locked.
Wipe
If I don’t think a lost BlackBerry is coming home, I can easily push out a wipe command that will occur the next time the phone touches the network.
No BES Support
BlackBerry Protect only works on devices that utilize the carrier’s BlackBerry Internet Service. If the device is activated to a BES (or was in the past and was not reset to factory properly), Protect will not work.