BIS, How secure is it?

[Alex77au]

I'm a new Optus BIS customer, I'm currently using BB Connect
on my Nokia E60 until my BB Pearl arrives.
I'm new to using BB and would like to know just how secure email and internet is using BIS

[GaryCutri]

How have you configured your BIS account to collect email? e.g. POP, IMAP or forwarding rule etc.

[CybaCowboy]

Wirelessly posted (RIM BlackBerry Curve 8300: BlackBerry8300/4.2.2 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/122)

The BIS is reasonably secure, certainly far more secure than most other cell (mobile) phones and PDAs, however if you want the maximum level of security, you will need to look at a BlackBerry Enterprise Solution (BES), which offers a corporate/entry-level Government level of security, by means of the strong encryption that is supported...

[Alex77au]

Originally Posted by GaryCutri

How have you configured your BIS account to collect email? e.g. POP, IMAP or forwarding rule etc.

I'm using the default email address name@provider.ap.blackberry.net

[Abhishek]

BIS is typically more secure than accessing the Internet from home using an ISP. If you need more secured environment as mentioned in earlier posts look for BES.

In case of BIS, everything operates on a public network. Data from your phone to your carrier is encrypted, but ultimately your carrier is communicating with the Internet, which isn’t the best way of security.

With BES, most of your data remains in a private, closed network. Your BlackBerry has a secure link directly to the corporate environment, because the BES server is located in the office somewhere. The only way for someone to monitor or intercept your data would be for them to infiltrate your organization.It acts like a VPN where data is communicated via a secured private tunnel between your blackberry handset and office.

A lot of our users have been shifting from BIS to BES with 1 user license which is free.

[GaryCutri]

Originally Posted by Abhishek

BIS is typically more secure than accessing the Internet from home using an ISP. If you need more secured environment as mentioned in earlier posts look for BES.

In case of BIS, everything operates on a public network. Data from your phone to your carrier is encrypted, but ultimately your carrier is communicating with the Internet, which isn’t the best way of security.

With BES, most of your data remains in a private, closed network. Your BlackBerry has a secure link directly to the corporate environment, because the BES server is located in the office somewhere. The only way for someone to monitor or intercept your data would be for them to infiltrate your organization.It acts like a VPN where data is communicated via a secured private tunnel between your blackberry handset and office.

A lot of our users have been shifting from BIS to BES with 1 user license which is free.

The BlackBerry Internet Service is very secure from your device back to the BIS servers (it uses SSL over a secure network). From the BIS server back to your mail server it is secure as the method you choose to collect your email. As an example if you use POP3 email you are essentially exposed to any vulnerabilities of that protocol such as logon credentials being sent in the clear. You can use more secure methods of collecting email such as IMAP or POP3s over SSL (e.g. Port 995) which will increase the security of the solution.