Security in Mobile

We all know by now that there was a huge security hole in Apple's iOS (and OS X) software that possibly would have allowed a mischievous—possibly nefarious—government agency to gain access to sensitive information on an Apple iOS device (or Mac).

By the way, if you haven't done so already, please drop what you are doing and go to software update on every Apple device you own. Seriously, right now! I'll wait.

Now that we have that out of the way, I wanted to post a quick blurb (read: rant) on security in mobile. Today, Apple released a white paper on iOS security, which begins as such:

"Apple designed the iOS platform with security at its core."

(via Daring Fireball: Apple Releases iOS Security White Paper)

How crazy is it that such a paper is released mere hours after Google's head of Android development says this amazingly stupid—although true—thing:

“We cannot guarantee that Android is designed to be safe… If I had a company dedicated to malware, I would also be addressing my attacks on Android.”

(via Google: We can’t guarantee Android is designed to be safe)

First off, there is no way that the paper was written in response to Google's comments. Secondly, I say that the above statement is amazingly stupid due to the fact that Google has taken responsibility for Android in the past; they have incubated the platform, they have charged money to validate their hardware partners, and they have poured countless man-hours into making it one of the best mobile operating systems in the current tech landscape. Do these actions not intimate a modicum of accountability when the virtues of said OS are called into question? In addition, at a time when more and more people realize that they are being spied on, is now the time to have such a nonchalant attitude toward security.

Wow, Google. Just wow.