Smart and Secure: Tap-Proof Voice Calls on Smartphones
Maximum security does not compromise convenience
Smartphones are now an integral part of our lives. It is hardly surprising that people sometimes unthinkingly use them to make calls that should be kept confidential. Users are often unaware of just how susceptible today’s mobile phones and transmission paths are to attack by resourceful hackers. In fact, the need for effective means of securing communications on mobile phones is huge: The armed forces, policymakers, government authorities and businesses all need solutions that let them use mobile phones without the permanent risk that the confidentiality of their calls is being compromised.
The TopSec Mobile is a crypto headset that connects to a smartphone over Bluetooth®. Calls are transmitted over an Internet connection using secure voice over IP (sVoIP) technology. VoIP is a global standard that offers smartphones universal and inexpensive access to the Internet over mobile networks and WLAN. ( Fig. 2)
Mobile phones may come and go, but TopSec Mobile remains
The TopSec Mobile (Fig. 1) is a smart solution that accommodates the popular habit of frequently upgrading to the very latest phone models. By using Bluetooth® to connect to smartphones, the device can encrypt and decrypt calls. Since practically all smartphones today offer Bluetooth®, the TopSec Mobile can work with all leading Android mobile phones and the iPhone, which together account for around 85 % of the global smartphone market.
The device is also unique in that it is currently the only solution of its kind to work with the iPhone. Prior to the advent of the TopSec Mobile, specialized encryption apps were the only means of making tap-proof calls on the iPhone, and they cannot generally be classed as secure. Even the encryption solutions available on microSD cards, which typically afford greater protection than software-only encryption apps, are not completely secure since they do not connect directly to the phone’s microphone.
Just how simple it is
The TopSec phone app supports both encrypted and unencrypted VoIP calls. Encrypted calls take place directly on the TopSec Mobile. The device encrypts and decrypts calls independently, without involving the smartphone or laptop. When making secure calls, users talk and listen through the TopSec Mobile’s own microphone and speaker, effectively eliminating any manipulation by malware.
VoIP calls have to be set up through a server, and users must be registered on the server in order to make and receive calls. The TopSec Mobile sets up encrypted connections using SIP and IAX2, two common signaling protocols. It works with both public SIP servers and with the R&S®VoIP-SERVER S110. The R&S®VoIP-SERVER S110 is ideal for user groups with special security requirements who prefer to operate their own VoIP server.
