Cameraphones disabled over the air

A SYSTEM which will enable network operators to disable the camera function inside mobile handsets has been installed by leading operators in both Europe and North America.

The software is being supplied to both operators and leading telecoms integrators by software house, Mformation. Clients already include Telefonica, Vodafone, T-Mobile, Cingular and Rogers.

Basically, the system can turn off (or turn on) any application which runs inside the handset. This includes the camera function as well as picture messaging (MMS), Bluetooth and WiFi.

One major benefit for an organisation where photos snatched by a cameraphone can be commercially dangerous, is that regular employees will no longer have to surrender their handsets on entering a building.

The mobile network will sense the employee's location and then temporarily disable the camera's functionality via an OTA (Over-The-Air) message.

The reverse is also true. Corporations will wish to enable (and correctly configure) the WiFi capability within cellular handsets. So - once inside a building - an employee's handset can automatically be switched to VoIP rather than a regular cellular call.

The software can drill deep into a handset's capabilities - even going as far as blocking certain kinds of content. Normally, this function would be used to block users from downloading games onto their work handsets.

But it could conceivably extend so far as blocking employees from downloading the latest cricket scores - so that they don't waste valuable company time. µ