Do you receive sensitive business and personal communications via e-mail? Do you carry valuable data on your Treo such as credit card or banking information that you don’t want to fall into the wrong hands? Security applications offer peace of mind in an unpredictable world.

Industry experts say that as many as 30% of all handheld devices are lost every year; approximately 37% of mobile enterprise users are likely to have confidential information on their handhelds; and 90% of mobile devices have insufficient protection and storage encryption to withstand casual to moderate hacker attacks.

Fortunately, three security applications, mSafe, Warden Security, and TealLock, provide solutions. The programs have some features in common. They provide manual and automatic device locking that require passwords to unlock private information. All can lock your device manually or automatically. In all cases, you must enter your full password to change any of the software’s options, and all three require that they reside in your Treo’s internal memory. But they differ in other features, including remote locking, data wiping, data encryption and enhanced SD card security. They also utlize different methods of password entry/enforcement.

These three security applications work with both the Treo 600 and Treo 650. Only you can decide which features you need, and which ones you don’t. The balance is to find the application that will let you in with the least amount of hindrance, yet lock out someone else who happens to come into possession of your Treo.

mSafe v3.9: Remote Locking & Remote Data Obliteration - $16.99

The first two security applications reviewed, mSafe and Warden Security, offer locking and/or data wiping when you send an SMS text message to your device with a secret code of your choosing. As a result, if your Treo is lost or stolen, you can use another cell phone or a PC to send a text message to remotely lock your Treo or erase its memory (including your SD card!). In the case of mSafe, this is the core functionality of the program.

mSafe utilizes a very simple interface for remote locking and data obliteration. It also provides a few failsafe locking measures as well. For example, you can cause your Treo to lock when the phone is turned off, network coverage is lost, a system reset occurs, or the SD card is removed. As a result, if your device is lost or stolen, the next person to come into possession of the device cannot block a locking SMS text message by turning off the phone or taking it out of your coverage area. Also, that person will be likely to do something to your device (such as remove your SD card) that will eventually cause it to lock or erase.

The SD card removal locking option is a great idea. If someone unkown ends up with your Treo, it’s very likely he will eventually pop the little card out in the course of monkeying with your device. She will be very surprised that it causes your data in internal memory to become unavailable. On the same note, I use freeware Radio Control to automatically turn my phone on and off at set times. The Treo loudly announces this. So I like using mSafe’s “lock when the phone turns off” option. That way, if someone finds my lost Treo in the bushes due to the loud chime it made when the phone shut down, it will be locked.

The more mSafe locking options you employ, the more likely you will have to use your password to gain access to your Treo, and the more secure it will be. Generally speaking, the program provides a good balance between providing you with easy access to your device with various levels of security in the event it’s stolen.

mSafe’s automatic locking options can be used as stop-gap measures for the real power of the software: wiping the memory remotely. Because the decision to erase your Treo may be heart wrenching, it’s not likely to come easily. It would likely be delayed until you became sure that your Treo was not just misplaced in the home, car or work. The automatic locking features serve to increase protection during the period of uncertainty. It is also for times when you are not aware that your Treo is gone, or did not discover it missing, say, until the next morning.

It’s also worth pointing out that, because mSafe gives you the option of locking or erasing your Treo by sending different text messages to your smartphone, you have choices when the device vanishes. I set both options so I can decide what to do based on the situation. If I just left my Treo at home and don’t want my idiot nephew to call all of Europe, I can send the chosen message to lock it. If the realization finally smites me that it’s stolen, I can clean it up from afar.

One drawback to mSafe is it relies on the Treo’s built in security program. It does not have it’s own locking apparatus, locking screen, or password settings. The built in Palm security on early model Palm devices (though not the current Treo line) was circumvented by a hacker who published how to do it. I wonder at the strength of Palm’s current approach to Treo locking. Also, Palm’s built in security program does not offer the variety of methods for entering passwords available to Warden Security and TealLock users.

mSafe SD card security

mSafe has a good handle on SD card security. You can optionally prevent a hacker from removing your card and inserting their own card to run a cracking application. (The Palm OS will run any application named “start.prc’’ from an SD card when it is inserted, and this can allow a clever hacker to steal your personal information whether your Treo is locked or not.) mSafe addresses this with a “disable when locked” option for the SD card. It causes the Treo to not accept a different card.

You can also choose to erase the SD card remotely, or just unmount it. The latter means that the Treo acts as if the card was removed, so a malicious user can’t access the programs or data on it using the smartphone. Erasing the card formats it.

Unmounting the card does not protect the data on it specifically. It simply won’t let your Treo launch any software that runs from the card, or let the intruder see what’s on the card using your smartphone. But the SD card could still be read on a desktop computer with a card reader, or inserted into another Palm device.

Be Sure to Set Different Wipe & Lock Passwords

It is essential to use different SMS passwords for the lock vs. the wipe option. Pick something easy to remember, like “lockit’’ to lock it remotely, and something more difficult for the wipe option. If someone sends you a text message that happens to be your SMS lock password, it’s no big deal. You just enter your regular password to unlock it.

You certainly don’t want to pick a common phrase to wipe the Treo, like “what’s up?’’ Choose a text password that you are not likely to receive from someone else, like “meltdowntreo.’‘ Don’t tell any of your trickster friends what this SMS password is.

Warden Security for Treo v1.5: Much More Robust & New Release Coming - $24.95

Corsoft’s Warden Security takes things several steps further with additional options. It offers many of the features of mSafe, such as remote SMS locking and data obliteration, automatic locking following a system reset, SD card removal, dropped network, and also has the remote SMS message lock option. But Warden also provides more traditional measures for locking your device, such as every time the screen is turned off or at a set amount of time following the screen turning off. You can also program your device to lock and unlock at certain times of day. Warden does not rely on the built-in Palm security program but employs its own. Finally, Warden offers a way of sending coded messages securely from the author’s website.

If set to lock, Warden presents a password screen when one tries to access your device. Because Warden does not rely on the Palm’s built in security system but rather employs its own, you can optionally set Warden to show a clock, battery power, and buttons for: “Make and Emergency Call,’’ “Call Owner,’’ and “In Case of Emergency (ICE).’’ These options can be used even while the Treo is locked. You can show an enticing message like, “Reward if found’’ instead of the clock, if you prefer.

Warden has selectable options for both “local’’ and “remote’’ locking. These concepts are unique to this security program and extremely powerful. Local locking is for when your Treo is in your possession. So background operations like calendar alerts, phone calls, and email are allowed to function normally. If locked and you receive a phone call, you can answer it, but will have to enter your password to access other functions of your Treo. If locked and a reminder beeps, you will be able to read it. Remote locking, on the other hand, stops such background activities.

One drawback to Warden is that it’s a bit more complicated to trigger remotely than mSafe, because you must send your locking message in a specific format. But this can be done via website or another cell phone. You can go to the Corsoft site or “LockMyTreo.com” to do this.

The following message would lock your Treo: WardenSecurityforTreo LOCK PASSWORD. Password means your password and end with a period. You can substitute “LOCK’’ with “KILL’’ and erase your data. You can also lock and send a message. All these options can be done automatically from the LockMyTreo website.

However you choose to use Warden to lock your device (locally or remotely), you can choose to not allow any incoming phone calls, except from the owner. This is defined by phone numbers in your default business card in the built-in contact database. With a person locked out using the remote SMS option, he or she cannot make or receive phone calls except from you. Other phone calls are sent directly to your voicemail.

Want to be able to send a message to the whoever has your device? With Warden you can add a short message to display to the finder or thief following your SMS lock code.

One feature that’s powerful in Warden is that you can set the program to erase your internal data if it has not been unlocked in a set number of hours or days. This data obliteration works regardless of whether a person is unable to unlock your Treo in the predefined time, or it remains undiscovered perhaps underneath a taxi seat.

Memory Card Security

Although the current version of Warden, v1.5 does not allow for SD card erasing, Warden Security 2.0 is currently being beta tested and is expected to be released shortly. It will offer more complete memory card security options.

Warden Security for Treo v2.0 – Soon

Warden is set to release its new version soon. This release will have two versions, a regular and a Pro. Current users of Warden v1.5, or those who purchase before the new version goes live, will be able to upgrade to the Premium version without additional charge.

Version 2.0 will allow for securing or encrypting the SD card; options to delete data after user specified number of unlock attempts; user configurable to temporarily unlock and allow auto-backup apps to run; user configurable remote lock string for use in clear-text; enhanced support for ICE – In Case of Emergency.

Version 2.0 also allows you to assign letters to the hard buttons of your device, so that you can enter your password by thumb pressing big buttons rather than by having to find letters on the qwerty keypad.

TealLock – No Remote Locking or Remote Data Obliteration. But Feature Rich And Exceptional In Other Ways - $19.95

TealLock approaches the problem of security from a different angle. It cannot be operated via an SMS mesage designed to trigger remote locking or data obliteration. But, designed for any Palm device running OS 4 or OS 5, this multi-featured security software from Tealpoint offers the most versatile approach to more traditional locking. (It’s also the most complex of the three.)

A password lockout screen can be initiated by a variety of events, such as every time your screen turns off, a set amount of time after your screen turns off, and after a reset. It offers an automatic data wipe using two unique checkbox options. Called “Data Self-Destruct,” it will erase all data from your Treo if someone tries to enter a wrong password too many times, or if you or someone enters a specified booby trap password.

The first wipe option is straight forward. If someone tries to break into your device by trying out different passwords, it will data-wipe it when it reaches the maximum number of tries you pre-set. Set it for three attempts if you have a keen mind and excellent coordination, and more tries if you are forgetful or clumsier. I like to set it for six tries to allow for temporary mental fog, a coordination-fouling position, or the occasional adult beverage.

The booby trap password option is for guesses that someone who knows you might try, or generic passwords a stranger might attempt, like “1234,’’ or “password.’’ You set this dummy password yourself, so make it memorable and completely different from your real one. If you are a CIA spy-type, and coerced into entering your password yourself, you can use the booby trap password to erase your data on the spot, thereby saving the lives of all other spies in your address book.

TealLock has three other password entry options. It can allow you to enter a quick password, as short as one letter. This is a great feature that lets you quickly get into your device without entering the full password each time. Because it’s clearly a less less secure method, TealLock allows you to set this to just one attempt during a very limited time window, so that someone else messing with your Treo would probably let the time elapse or press the wrong key first, rendering the short password invalid. Once a mistake is made with the short password, TealLock prompts you to enter the full password. I believe this is perhaps the strongest attribute of the application because it strikes a good balance between quick access to data with real security.

TealLock also allows you to assign the characters of your password to your hard buttons and five-way navigator. This way, you can press these buttons in the correct sequence to more easily enter your password. You can assign the button commands to show, mask or hide your private records, too.

Finally, TealLock allows you to set a back door and a guest password. The back door, if selected, lets you unlock your device if you somehow forgot your password. This is called the “emergency password,” and is the registration key TealPoint sends you to enable the full version from the trialware when you purchase TeaLock.

If you have someone who constantly uses your Treo, or if someone asks to use your phone, the guest password lets them use the phone and other functions but hides private records. The guest cannot change TealLock features, and private records are automatically hidden or masked, even if they were already open.

Memory Card Security

TealLock offers optional memory card encryption. You have the choice of which type of encryption to use, and which application data to encrypt. This keeps someone from readily accessing this data using a desktop card reader.

TealLock is so highly configurable that to discuss all the features would actually require me to write a tutorial. It has four major categories, Activation, Security, Lock Screen, and Other. Under these, there are 14 subcategories. Selecting each subcategory gives you at least a half-dozen options. Some of it is cool. I like that you can set a proprietary background graphic for the lock screen. You can also define the text that is displayed there, such as, “reward if found.”

TealPoint has been around for several years and offers some pretty outstanding products. They are known for memorably odd software registration codes, like, `”loud hills;’’ their madly configurable software, and the only hackmaster that can still launch several hacks, even if sometimes in a limited way, on the Palm OS5 platform.

Which one is best?

This review is designed to allow you to decide for yourself.

mSafe is the least expensive and perhaps most straight forward. It’s primary function is to lock or erase your device remotely via SMS messages with codes and formats of your choosing. It will not lock your device at every single screen power-down or at preset times. But it has strong failsafe automatic options in case locking SMS messages don’t get through. mSafe relies on Palm’s built-in security program, which means you must rely on the qwerty keyboard to input your password, and cannot use the hard buttons instead. It has strong SD card security.

Warden offers almost all of the features of mSafe plus more traditional locking and data obliteration options. You can cause Warden to lock your device every time the screen is turned off, at certain times of day, and at certain time intervals following the screen turning off. The format for locking or deleting your data via SMS is a bit tricky unless you use the LockMyTreo web site. Warden v2.0 is a free upgrade due out soon that will solve SD security problems and offer similar data encryption options as TealLock. Like TealLock, the new version will allow you to use the Treo’s four hard hardbuttons for quick password entry.

TealLock does not have remote locking or data obliteration capabilities. It is strictly traditional security. But it’s worth considering because it’s the most configurable and truly automatic. The most complex security program of the three reviewed in this article, you can rest assured it will carry out your instructions to lock and wipe the data if someone tries to break into your Treo. It has great encryption options. I particularly like the quick password option (and hard button password entry option) because it provides very fast access to data without creating undue security risks.

If I were forced to choose, I would go with Warden v2.0 Premium. I say this cautiously because the new version is in the beta stage, and I haven’t tested it out myself yet. But the features promised by it represent the best combination of remote locking and wiping possibilities with traditional security and enrcyption.

My second choice would be a tie between mSafe and TealLock. mSafe is brilliant in its simplicity. It has good SD card security options and failsafe measures for when SMS messages cannot reach it. Locking your device remotely in a pinch has gotta feel good. Also, mSafe is unique in that it replies with a confirmation SMS message when it has been locked or wiped remotely. So you know your device is secure.

On the other hand, there is something to be said for traditional security. TealLock has superb password options, like guest password, quick password, dummy password, emergency password and the hard key entry. It can really be configured to work quite well. You can set it to lock at times of day and days of the week. You can choose which apps can run when locked (such as backup applications and screen messages). You can choose your own locking screen image.

Related Links

Download mSafe now!

Download Warden now!

Download TealLock now!

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Filed under: Software reviews