Tag: "Kevin Bacon"

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Review: SmrtGuard v1.51-Your Smart Phone Guardian by SmrtGuard

By Susan C on Jun 01, 2009 in BlackBerry, BlackBerry Sync Store, Downloads, Software.

smrtguardsummary

Going with the theme today of Security Sunday, this review is on the SmrtGuard-Your Smart Phone Guardian by Smrt Guard. SmrtGuard is software security to protect your phone and your information. Remember, movie stars should be examples, and as Kevin Bacon and Paris Hilton have so kindly taught us: Don’t let this happen to you.

So what is SmrtGuard and what does it mean to you? Well, SmrtGuard is a security software program that is designed to protect your phone and your information. You’re able to track your BlackBerry with no GPS required. You are able to fully wipe sensitive data on the BlackBerry from where you are. You can back up all your sensitive data which includes: PIMs; call logs; emails and more. You can back up and restore your personal data (you might want to do that every so often, so when you do lose your BlackBerry, and have to wipe it, that you have those things you want to save on hand). The data can be accessed through the SmrtGuard web portal. You can use audio ping to locate your phone, even if it’s on mute.

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With SmrtGuard, you are able to:

  • Remote OTA Backup (manual or scheduled) PIMs, Call logs, Emails
  • Remote OTA Restore PIMs, Call logs, Emails
  • Remote Data Wipe (including microSD)
  • Remote Tracking (lowjack) and Locating – see it on our companion website that comes with the account
  • Remote Listen – Listen to your thief or be a spy
  • Remote Lock
  • Remote Audio Ping (to help you find the device)
  • Personal Guardian (send out distress call with push of a button)
  • SIMCard Guardian – alert send out when unauthorized SIM is used (GSM based phone only)
  • Loved-one Tracking – Great for couples and families with smartphones to track each other

    • The Personal Guardian will allow you to send a distress SMS/Email/Call with a single button push. The SimCard Guardian alerts users that an unregistered Sim card being used in the phone. You can use it to remotely lock the phone or use it to remotely listen to the phone’s surroundings.

    I received the product and began to install. The first step when installing this product is to register and activate the account online from your pc. Step two is to install the program on the phone and activate. For best results, they advise using the BlackBerry native email account from your phone, this is the one your carrier gives you free with your BlackBerry. I was really excited. The controls on the phone are really easy to use. A few extra controls on the phone are setting up the Personal Guardian or SIMs Card Guardian. The Personal Guardian allows you to set a button that you hold for a few seconds and it calls an emergency contact. It’s your own 911.

    So while looking at the controls on the phone, there were several options on the phone besides the Personal Guardian. On the phone you can set up the Backup options and how often. You can set up your Restore options, Your Data options, and Follow Me. With Backup you can choose Contacts, Memos, Tasks, Events, Call Logs, and Emails. With Restore you can choose the same as above. Your Data shows how man Memos, Tasks, Contacts, Events, Call Log Counts, Emails, and File Counts you have on your handheld. Follow Me you can choose on foot or in vehicle. In a Vehicle it will keep track of you every three minutes and on foot it will keep track every five minutes. You can stop follow from the phone as well. In Personal Guardian you can have the phone call a contact or 911 and email another if you hold the “panic” button.

    The Dashboard has so much available to you. In the Dashboard you have a map. Now they do let you know it is not 100% accurate so I cannot fault them for the map not being on target. In fact, it was quite off. The map is powered by Google Maps. You have the options Track My BB, Stop Tracking, Self-Destruct, Self-Destruct Test, Remote Listen, Locate My BB, Audio Ping, and Lock Device. With Track My BB, it will track the BlackBerry every five minutes. It will stop when you stop. Locate My BB will only check once and show the location on the map. In this you have the option to show location as to how many hours. By default it is set to 24 hours. Audio Ping is to help you find your phone. It will make a noise till it is turned off. The Self-Destruct Test will do a practice run but will not destroy any data, unlike the actual Self-Destruct will. You can also allow a “loved-one” to track you, giving them piece of mind, with Loved-One Tracker . The only tab they will be able to view after you set it up is the Tracker. You can also register your spouse’s and child’s BlackBerry with the SmrtGuard so that you can track them as well. I tested the many features and was impressed. Self Destruct Test was pretty neat, and of course I didn’t do the actual Self Destruct. Remote Listen has the phone call a handset of your choice, so you can listen to the phone. There could be several ways to use this feature. Audio Ping works too. Now the Lock Device locks the phone, but this is where you would want it to be password protected. Unlike the ROblock, the lock can be unlocked with the star and green button if you don’t have it password protected. There’s no place for a unlocking the phone on the Dashboard manually. From the Dashboard you are able to view: Dashboard, Account, Contacts, To Do, Memos, Call Logs, Events and Mail. I love the idea of wiping your data, especially from your Micro SD card. It’s good to know, although I love my family, my movies (I’d hate to see my Keanu Movies get wiped), and my music, I don’t have to worry about someone having the pictures of my daughters and family or their phone numbers and addresses as well. It gives me less to worry about.

    So in my opinion, is there a need for this program? Of course, now at days you can never have too much protection. I mean, don’t ever say it won’t happen to you. It can happen to the best of us. And your BlackBerry is your sidekick, take care of it and your information.

    For Customer Service, SmrtGuard is very quick to answer emails and questions, I never waited long for a response. I felt assured that any issues would be addressed quickly.

    The map I wasn’t too thrilled about but they did say it wasn’t perfect. I also know that my carrier locks the GPS on my phone to third parties, so it wasn’t too surprising for me that it didn’t get a precise location. The manual lock from the PC would be a neat touch, but make sure through your Options>Security Options>General Options that you enable password protection and you will have no worries.

    Pros: The pros are the self-destruct, the Personal Guardian, the audio ping, the listening in option, and choosing what to back up. It’s easy and allows you to track your phone, let others track you, and allow yourself to track others. Nice touch.

    Cons: The map with non GPS enabled phones, having to have a password secured phone, and that was it.

    If you are interested in the SmrtGuard v1.51, you’re in luck. We have it in the BlackBerry Sync Store and it’s available in three different ways: Monthly for $3.99; Bi-Annual for $22.99; and Annual for $44.99.

    Grab a copy of SmrtGuard V1.51 today from the BlackBerry Sync Store >

    Compatible BlackBerry handsets: 7130c, 7130e, 7130g, 7130v, 8100 (Pearl), 8110 (Pearl), 8120 (Pearl), 8130 (Pearl), 8220 (Pearl Flip), 8300 (Curve), 8310 (Curve), 8320 (Curve), 8330 (Curve), 8350i (Curve), 8700c, 8700f, 8700g, 8700r, 8700v, 8703e, 8705g, 8707g, 8707h, 8707v, 8800, 8820, 8830, 8900 (Curve), 9000 (Bold), Curve, Pearl, Storm

    Compatible OS: 4.2, 4.3, 4.5, 4.6, 4.7

    Rating: ★★★★½

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    Review: ROblock v2.0 Theft Recovery Software by Vapssky

    By Susan C on May 31, 2009 in BlackBerry, Downloads, Software.

    roblock

    You may have heard of ROblock, and you might have even come across it in our article, “What To Do If You Lose Your BlackBerry“. The article had come out a few days prior to Kevin Bacon losing his. So in light of this, I have two software I’m reviewing and an announcement of a parental control software. I’m declaring today as Security Sunday.

    ROblock v2.0 by Vappsky is a Theft Recover Software for BlackBerry is available for $9.95. The program according to the description can point the location of your lost or stolen device on Google Maps using the WHERE command. If you do not have GPS integration or a GPS signal available, then it will use the cellular tower location information to show the approximate location of your device. You have three ways available to communicate with your phone: sms; email; and the web interface. There is sms/email notification in the event that your phone has a sims card and it is replaced. You have the power to recover the Address book contacts. You have the ability to remotely wipe the entire content of your phone and your micro sd card, which is irreversible so make sure you have it backed up. There is a remote lock and alarm as well, in which you can lock the phone, locking the keypad and making it inoperable. This is the most intriguing part to me which I love: a high pitch alarm you can activate which will sound until the phone is unlocked. You can unlock it as you locked it and the alarm is optional. You can make your lost or stolen phone dial any number you want, so that you can listen in on it’s location and where abouts. You can send custom text messages with return information by command that will come up on the display so the finder can return the device. Here’s another advantage, this program can wipe the entire device without BIS/BES service. It uses sms, email, or GPRS for communication so you can wipe or recover the device even where service is unavailable, or the SIMs card has been replaced.

    So now the product. I was sent the product with the key. I looked for TCP settings which are recommended to check, and after some looking into realized that I have an 8330 Verizon Curve, and for CDMA there is no TCP setting available. I installed the app, and there sits a black ring with a red button that looks like a black ring round a red trackball.You first activate the program then go online to their login website as a new user and activate the web interface control. So the first thing I notice is that the web interface allows you to connect with the phone. It sends little emails that don’t actually show in your box. The web interface has to successfully connect with my phone by those emails. However the WHERE option did not work with my handset. I’m not sure if it’s because of GPS (VZW blocks third party GPS apps) or if the cell site use is not currently as functionional as could be. But in any case, I never was able to see that in action. There is retrieve contacts, this worked quite efficiently. I was impressed how easy that was. Remote wipe, of course I wasn’t going to try that on my phone today. The remote lock is neat, this is one of my favorite things I experienced. Lock it without an alarm or with an alarm. The lock with sounds like a police siren, it’s loud and even if your phone is on mute, guess what? It’s going to sound. And unlocking will not work with a star and green button. It must be unlocked through the web interface itself.  With lock with no alarm just locks it and must be unlocked by the web interface. The Call Back option worked great, where the phone calls a phone of your choice so you can listen in. Hint, use a phone to call with no ringbacks so it’s silent. Ringbacks might alert a thief if it’s pretty loud. Display Text is neat, worked like a charm, you send a text and the phone displays it on the front screen. Pretty nifty. The fact if you have a SIMs card and can wipe it, and can wipe the media card as well is a great bonus. Not that we have pictures we want to lose, but why let our family be at risk, right? I have my daughters pictures and addresses, along with phone numbers, I want to keep them safe. My movies of Keanu and music I can replace, but wouldn’t like the idea of my family being in the hands of a stranger. I like how the web interface displays the name of the carrier, the battery life on the phone, whether the backlight is on, whether the keypad is locked and what the signal strength is like for the phone. For submitting trouble tickets, you have to register as a new user for that as well. I did submit a trouble ticket to see if they could resolve the WHERE issue.

    On the handset itself, the icon access is password protected. After entering your password you are taken to a page to set up your emergency contact from your contacts. Also you can set up Email Settings, Change Your Password, Verify Settings (recommended so it is sure to be functioning correctly), Help, Exit, and Change Option.

    Do I see a need for this type of program? Of course, it’s in the media, it’s in the news, and not just movie stars. Government employees who lose them here and there, your child’s phone, it can happen to anyone at anytime. So instead of waiting for it to happen, why not be prepared? An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

    So for the look of the program and user friendly part, I have to give it 4.5 stars, docking a half point since there is no explanation about TCP settings and CDMA phones. That was somewhat of a confusing issue.

    For customer service when having an issue, it’s a little bit slow, sometimes taking four hours or more to respond, this might be a little of a concern. So I’d have to go to 4 stars for that one. While my issues weren’t huge, it’s good to know I didn’t have severe issues like my phone being locked and unable to be unlocked or something of that nature. The product is actually really good.

    For the actual web interface and all the options, the only thing that didn’t work was WHERE. So that might be something that needs to be looked at. So I’ll give that one about 4 stars because it’s nice to at least try and envision the phone. Everything else worked perfect, and the alarm is a favorite part of the program for me.

    Pros: The Program is effective in what it does. You can send texts, lock your phone, retrieve your contacts and wipe it out. For GPS phones you can see where your phone is at. You can view how much battery life your phone has, whether it’s in an area of reception. So for that I’m pretty impressed. I love the way it’s easy to use, the web interface is pretty explanitory and the set up on the phone is pretty basic. The alarm is pretty loud and I could just imagine having to use that, the attention the phone would cause.

    Cons: WHERE only seems to work if the phone is GPS capable, the directions about TCP was a little confusing, and that was it. Everything else was a charm. Customer service perhaps could be a bit more prompt, but I’m thankful the program doesn’t have any issues that are major. Would I still use this program? Yes, for all that it does, I still can see it being worth it. And I could even use it for other uses as well. The listening in by having your phone call can have several applications as a type of “bug”.

    You can download your copy of ROblock v2.0 Theft Recovery Software for $9.95 from the Vapssky website >

    Compatible with BlackBerry: 7130c, 7130e, 7130g, 7130v, 8100 (Pearl), 8110 (Pearl), 8120 (Pearl), 8130 (Pearl), 8220 (Pearl Flip), 8300 (Curve), 8310 (Curve), 8320 (Curve), 8330 (Curve), 8350i (Curve), 8700c, 8700f, 8700g, 8700r, 8700v, 8703e, 8705g, 8707g, 8707h, 8707v, 8800, 8820, 8830, 8900 (Curve), 9000 (Bold), Curve, Pearl, Storm

    Compatible with OS: 4.2, 4.3, 4.5, 4.6, 4.7

    Rating: ★★★★½

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    SmrtGuard v1.51 Is Officially Available For Your BlackBerry

    By Susan C on May 30, 2009 in BlackBerry, BlackBerry Sync Store, Downloads, Software.

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    SmrtGuard-Your Smart Phone Guardian is one of the great apps that was featured at WES, and it’s all about the security. We featured it in an article “What To Do If You Lose Your Blackberry“. Kevin Bacon lost his a few days later, he really should have read our article, but hind site is always 20/20. The moral of the story: Don’t let this happen to you!

    So what is SmrtGuard and what does it mean to you? Well, SmrtGuard is a security software program that is designed to protect your phone and your information. You’re able to track your BlackBerry with no GPS required. You are able to fully wipe sensitive data on the BlackBerry from where you are. You can back up all your sensitive data which includes: PIMs; call logs; emails and more. You can back up and restore your personal data (you might want to do that every so often, so when you do lose your BlackBerry, and have to wipe it, that you have those things you want to save on hand). The data can be accessed through the SmrtGuard web portal. You can use audio ping to locate your phone, even if it’s on mute.

    The Personal Guardian will allow you to send a distress SMS/Email/Call with a single button push. The SimCard Guardian alerts users that an unregistered Sim card being used in the phone. You can use it to remotely lock the phone or use it to remotely listen to the phone’s surroundings. For further information on the product, you can read more on their SmrtGuard website.

    There are currently three types of pricing. Monthly for $3.99, Bi-Annual for $22.99, and annual for $44.99. It’s a small price to invest in your personal information and your BlackBerry. Kevin Bacon and Paris Hilton can testify to that statement. Don’t wait till it happens to you.

    Grab your copy of choice of SmrtGuard from the BlackBerry Sync Store today >

    Supported models for this app are: BlackBerry Storm, BlackBerry Bold, BlackBerry Curve 8900, BlackBerry Curve (83xx Series), BlackBerry Pearl (81xx Series), BlackBerry Flip Pearl, BlackBerry 88xx Series     

    Supported OS are: 4.2, 4.3, 4.5, 4.6, 4.7