Xiaomi to Sort out Security Issues with Indian Air Force Authorities
By Anirban Roy October 27, 2014 13:29 IST



Clarifying that it does not collect data without user's consent, Xiaomi has said they will approach the authorities of Indian Air Force on data security.

Last week, there was a huge debate on the advisory released by the Indian Air Force authority, which asked their Squadrons and families not to use the Mi phones. And the whole issue was revolving around security issues of user data.

"We are trying to get to the bottom of this. So far, we have not heard anything from the IAF or any other authorities and have only read media reports. We will reach out to authorities and engage with them to address any concerns that they might have," Xiaomi Vice President Hugo Barra told PTI.

Earlier this year, security application manufacturer F-Secure tested the Redmi 1S phones and were found sending user's data along with IMEI, phone number, contacts call logs and messages to a Beijing-based remote server.

It is believed that the IAF notice was prepared after this report and a few inputs from Computer Emergency Response Team - India (CERT-In).

Barra clarified that Xiaomi never retrieves user's data without their consent. The MIUI cloud, responsible for archiving user's data is also kept off by default and can only starts working once the user switches it on.

"We don't have a revolutionary product. Like many other messaging services, we also offer messaging, back-up, cloud services to our customers. We also have the highest standards of encryption to ensure that users' data is safe," he added.

Entering Indian market in July this year, Xiaomi has sold huge number of devices in India through flash sales. The Mi series handsets are quite popular and have sold around half a million Redmi devices in the country.

http://www.ibtimes.co.in/xiaomi-sort...rities-612314?

Indian Air Force warns against using Xiaomi phones
indiatoday.in New Delhi, October 22, 2014 | UPDATED 16:26 IST



There have been privacy and security concerns around Xiaomi phones in the past but now Indian Air Force (IAF) is reportedly warning against using the devices manufactured by the Chinese company.According to a report by the Sunday Standard, the IAF has told its officers and their families not to use Xiaomi devices, citing security concerns. The IAF reportedly suggests that Xiaomi devices send data to an agency which reports to the ministry of information industry in China.

The IAF, according to the report, issued the advisory on the basis of information obtained from the Indian Computer Response Team, which also confirmed that Xiaomi phones send back data to China.

But at the moment it is not clear if the Response Team had obtained the information from its own internal testing or from a few third-party reports several weeks ago that claimed Xiaomi devices were sending data to Chinese servers without user permission. Xiaomi had denied those claims and had said that as part of its cloud services, the phone might have been sending some data to its computing centres in China.

Xiaomi has been accused of doing the same in Taiwan, and the government there is investigating the situation.

Earlier, security software maker F-Secure claimed that the Xiaomi Redmi 1S smartphone was sending back data to servers in China. Xiaomi said that its Mi Cloud service was enabled by default and then it made amends by pushing out a software update that disabled the service by default and making it an opt-in.

The IAF in its note mentioned many instances of Xiaomi phones and tablets sending back data to China. It cited a Hong Kong based user who claimed that the Redmi Note phone was automatically connecting to servers in China and sending back photos, and messages.

Previously, even the Doctorate General of Military operations of the Indian army had issued a similar warning for a Chinese mobile app. The army reportedly claimed that the location sharing feature in the app was fraudulently transmitting data to China.

http://indiatoday.intoday.in/technol.../1/397130.html