TaigaPhone is a smartphone that Natalya Kaspersky (co-founder of Kaspersky Lab) is working on. It has the ability to prevent Google and Facebook from spying on user data. InfoWatch Group, based in Moscow, is behind the design of the smartphone. Natalya happens to be the President of this organization as well.
TaigaPhone will prevent…
TaigaPhone will run on a customized Android version to prevent apps from collecting user data. It is unconfirmed whether Google Play Store will gain access to it. Quoting Natalya, “Most smartphone apps collect certain data on users and send it to outside servers.” Furthermore, she revealed her observation of malicious or accidental sharing of user data with third-party agencies – when they use smartphones for personal use at the office.
TaigaPhone will allow…
The smartphone allows users to monitor and control the data that apps want to collect. Additionally, IT departments of corporate companies will have control over what apps are installed and the shared contents among the users.
Target and Release
TaigaPhone aims to protect the sensitive data of Russian users from the espionage of U.S. servers. Kaspersky Lab will soon release the phone in Russia.
The company initially targets manufacturing 50,000 units of the phone in China. The workers in the Russian companies co-owned by the government will enjoy the first availability. The markets of the United Arab Emirates and Malaysia will receive the phone as well.
Taiga’s price in Russia will be about 15,000 rubles ($260). The device is in the final phase of production. It is dual SIM with a 5-inch display, featuring two cameras. Further info on specs isn’t yet known!
Situations
Taiga is the latest example of the gradual heat-up of the technological cold war between Russia and the U.S. In the recent past, Trump banned the usage of Kaspersky antivirus in the U.S. As the reason, the President credited it to national security. Not only that, the Trump administration directed the American government agencies to get rid of every Kaspersky product in their networks. As for Russia, President Putin is on course to reduce reliance on American firms like IBM and Microsoft. Add Taiga to that!
