Well, if you thought KNOX was going to cease existing, then Google and Samsung might have spilled water on all your dreams. Today, at Google I/O, the search giant announced that it will be integrating part of KNOX right into Android for making it more secure for enterprises and IT administrators, allowing them to create special containers on a device for business data in order to keep it secure. KNOX will be integrated into Android L, the next release of Android that is currently slated for release in the fall, and finally bring the popular mobile operating system to a level where it can be considered safe for use in the corporate world at its core.
Injong Rhee, Senior Vice President of KNOX Business Group at Samsung Electronics, gave the following statement:
I am very pleased and welcome this ground breaking partnership with Google. As a driving force of Android powered mobile devices, Samsung is in a unique position to meet the rapidly evolving mobile security and privacy needs of Android users. We are delighted with the opportunity to work with Google to help build Android’s enterprise eco-system and establish Android device as the leading choice for businesses. This represents an amazing transformation in workforce mobility.
Basically, Samsung has contributed heavily to what Google is dubbing Android for Work, further enhancing the collaboration between the two giants, and singlehandedly making Samsung possibly the biggest contributor to the Android Open Source Project. KNOX has been certified by major organizations, including the US Government and Department of Defense (DoD), and it looks like it will be a huge part of Android for the foreseeable future.
Press Release:
Samsung and Google to Bring Enterprise Enhancements to Android
Samsung KNOX Security to be Contributed to Android
San Francisco, CA – June 25, 2014 – Samsung Electronics Co, Ltd., and Google announced that a part of the Samsung KNOX technology will be integrated into the next version of the Android. The next version of Android, which was previewed today at Google I/O, will include a number of new features for enterprise users and IT administrators, such as a separate container to manage and secure business data.This new experience will also provide business users and IT administrators with the ability to adapt to evolving enterprise mobility trends. The announcement is great news for Samsung KNOX related Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) and developers who can extend potential target market to a broader Android community with minimal implementation effort.
“I am very pleased and welcome this ground breaking partnership with Google. As a driving force of Android powered mobile devices, Samsung is in a unique position to meet the rapidly evolving mobile security and privacy needs of Android users,” said Injong Rhee, Senior Vice President of KNOX Business Group at Samsung Electronics. “We are delighted with the opportunity to work with Google to help build Android’s enterprise eco-system and establish Android device as the leading choice for businesses. This represents an amazing transformation in workforce mobility.”
“Samsung has been pioneering to bring Android to the enterprise. We are grateful for their contribution to the Android open source project,” said Hiroshi Lockheimer, VP of Engineering, Android. “Jointly we are bringing enterprise-grade security and management capabilities to all manufacturers participating in the Android ecosystem.”
The goal of this unique collaboration is to address the evolving needs for a resilient and secure mobile platform. At the same time it ensures that the end user privacy and experiences are not compromised, so users can enjoy the same Android experience for work as they do for personal use. Along with this effort to expand into the enterprise mobility market powered by the Android platform, Samsung will continue to provide th advanced, differentiated, and comprehensive enterprise mobility solution for enterprise customers.
Samsung KNOX is currently the only Android provider of defense-grade and government-certified mobile security complying with key US Government and Department of Defense (DoD) initiatives and other standards for mobile device security. This enables its deployment in government and other highly regulated enterprise environments. The Samsung KNOX platform received the STIG approval from the US Defense Information Systems Agency to use in US DoD networks in May 2013 and was upgraded to STIG version 2 in April 2014. UK government also recently published End User Device (EUD) Security Guidance for Samsung KNOX on using select Samsung Android devices. Additionally, MDFPP Common Criteria was certified for KNOX embedded devices such as Galaxy S5 and Note 10.1 (2014 Edition) in May 2014 and Galaxy S4, Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy Note PRO in Feb 2014 each.
Samsung also offers a comprehensive KNOX management and application store service. In addition to the Samsung KNOX components found in this next generation Android platform, Samsung will keep developing specialized proprietary services such as KNOX EMM and KNOX Marketplace.
For more information, please visit www.samsungknox.com
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in technology, opening new possibilities for people everywhere. Through relentless innovation and discovery, we are transforming the worlds of TVs, smartphones, tablets, PCs, cameras, home appliances, printers, LTE systems, medical devices, semiconductors and LED solutions. We employ 286,000 people across 80 countries with annual sales of US$216.7 billion. To discover more, please visit www.samsung.com.
