China mulling its own 'secure' smartphones

As China, the world's largest smartphone market, grows wary of US surveillance, it is mulling its own "secure" smartphones in an attempt to insulate them from surveillance, reports Economic Times.
The effort - another step in the country's quest to build a homegrown tech industry - would involve state-owned companies as well as some of the private players, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has joined with China's ministry of public security to develop a mobile operating system for police officers that it bills as more secure.
The country's largest chip-design company, Spreadtrum Communications Inc., separately said it would begin mass producing a set of chips that run a Chinese operating system by year-end.
In China, almost all handsets are either iPhones or are powered by Google's Android operating system - something not to the liking of Chinese officials.
Even the Chinese-made ZTE Nubia Z5 smartphone runs on Android and includes a Qualcomm Inc. processor.

China mulling its own secure smartphones

As China, the worlds largest smartphone market, grows wary of US surveillance, it is mulling its own secure smartphones in an attempt to insulate them from surveillance, reports Economic Times. The effort - another step in the countrys quest to build a homegrown tech industry - would involve state-owned companies as well as some of the private players, the Wall Street Journal reported. Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has joined with Chinas ministry of public security to develop a mobile operating system for police officers that it bills as more secure. The countrys largest chip-design company, Spreadtrum Communications Inc., separately said it would begin mass producing a set of chips that run a Chinese operating system by year-end. In China, almost all handsets are either iPhones or are powered by Googles Android operating system - something not to the liking of Chinese officials. Even the Chinese-made ZTE Nubia Z5 smartphone runs on Android and includes a Qualcomm Inc. processor.