BlackBerry working with Boeing on self-destructing smartphone

BlackBerry is working with Boeing Coon Boeing's high-security Android-based smartphone, the Canadian mobiletechnology company's chief executive has said.

The Boeing Black phone being developed by the Chicago-basedaerospace and defense contractor, which is best known for jetliners and fighterplanes, can self-destruct if it is tampered with.

The Boeing Black device encrypts calls and is aimed atgovernment agencies and others that need to keep communications and datasecure.

"We're pleased to announce that Boeing is collaboratingwith BlackBerry to provide a secure mobile solution for Android devicesutilizing our BES 12 platform," BlackBerry CEO John Chen said on a conferencecall held to discuss its quarterly results.

"That, by the way, is all they allow me to say."

The BlackBerry Enterprise Service, or BES 12, will allowclients such as corporations and government agencies to manage and secure not justBlackBerry devices on internal networks, but those that run on rival operatingsystems such as Google's Android and Apple's iOS.

The Boeing phone uses dual SIM cards to enable it to accessmultiple cell networks and can be configured to connect with biometric sensorsand satellites. Boeing has begun offering the phone to potential customers.