Re: Quick item re cellular encryption

[Adam Shostack <adam@bwh.harvard.edu>]

SafeCall 617 330 8890

Cellular Privacy Unit attaches to the mothpeice & earpeice of your
phone, uses variable split band inversion. The cost, depending on the
phone, is about $599 one coming out for Motorola flip phones, might be
more ($699).


2 modes of operation:
call 1 800 number
checks customer, gives dial tone
$25 activation $ 5/month .75/minute anywwhere in the US + airtime from 
your celular carrier.  In this mode, you connect to their system, get 
decrypted, sent out on their phone lines to the other end.  Incoming 
voice gets 'encryted' and sent to you.

or 

buy two units, bypass their system.

They also make a fax unit.

Seems that $600 only buys you a little bit of on-air security.  When I 
asked about the possibility of using real encryption, she said that they 
might, but couldn't give me any firm commitments.  I've asked for their 
literature, and will pass on if it has anything more interesting. 

Adam


Netsurfer wrote:
| This was parsed off Edupage - anyone know what type of encryption they are
| using?
| 
| -NetSurfer
| 
| BEWARE CELLULAR CONFIDENCES
| Lawyers who use cellular phones to discuss private matters with clients are
| increasingly turning toward encryption technology to protect confidential
| information. Boston-based SafeCall, a company that guarantees secure
| cellular conversations by routing the calls through its scrambler, says its
| largest and fastest growing contingent of customers is lawyers. Meanwhile,
| a six-step set of how-to instructions for turning a Motorola flip-phone
| into a cellular call receiver was posted on the Internet. (Wall Street
| Journal 9/1/94 B1)
|