Edward Snowden Designs iPhone 6 Case to Provide Better Security to Users; How Does it Work?
Edward Snowden is a Former CIA Employee and Computer Professional
An iPhone 6 case designed to tell its owners that its data is being watched has been invented by Edward Snowden.
Former CIA employee and computer profession Snowden together with hardware hacker Andrew "Bunnie" Huang invent the "introspection engine" to alert the owner that its mobile data has been compromised whether via WiFi, Bluetooth or cellular connection.
"Introspection Engine" - How it Works
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The introspection engine is incorporated in an iPhone 6 case and works by protecting the phone from being monitored especially if it is transmitting data. According to The Guardian, there is a monochromatic display embedded in the casing that will indicate whether the mobile phone is transmitting or not. It also serves as a powerbank as it can provide extra battery power.
Its main function is to completely cut off the smartphone's antena to disable anyone from finding the user's location and other sensitive data. It was designed with the protection of journalists in mind. Snowden explained that journalists' use of technological device could very well be their downfall as people become more adept at exploiting them.
Wired noted that the pair cited the murder of American war correspondent Marie Colvin in Syria. According to the outlet, Colvin's family believes that the journalist was followed by the mobile communications devices she had on her. Colvin was reportedly killed in a targeted bombing by the Assad regime for reporting about the war's civilian deaths.
"Trusting a phone that has been hacked to go into airplane mode is like trusting a drunk person to judge if they are sober enough to drive," they wrote on their paper. The mockups of the iPhone 6 case with the introspection engine by Snowden and Huang has been published online.
According to Snowden, the radio signals emitted by the mobile device and used by phone companies can be manipulated and used by third parties. Even a smartphone's "airplane mode" where the WiFi, Bluetooth and cellular transmission has been disabled cannot be relied on.
Introspection Engine Not Coming to Markets Anytime Soon
The introspection engine design was presented by Snowden and Huang during an event at the MIT MEdia Lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The introspection engine device is reportedly an academic project and may not be for public consumption in at least a few years. Ars Technica reports that Snowden and Huang want to build a prototype of their design for testing it live.
