The Carrier IQ saga continues today, as the company has now issued a 19-page PDF document explaining what it and its software "does and does not do." Much of the information contained within the report is stuff we've heard before from Carrier IQ, but the company does mention a bug that it discovered in its software that collects some actual SMS messages. The bug is said to only occur in certain situations, like when a text message comes in during a phone call or data session, and Carrier IQ claims that the messages are encoded in with other data that's being collected and are not actually readable by humans. Carrier IQ adds that it does not collect MMS, emails, photos, web pages, audio or video. As for the SMS bug, Carrier IQ says that it and its customers swung into action to squash the bug after its discovery.
Additionally, Carrier IQ touches on log files similar to the ones shown in Trevor Eckhart's now famous video. The company says that although it can't comment on all of the different versions of Android used by manufacturers, the log files in Eckhart's video are the result of debug messages from pre-production software from the manufacturer that remained turned on even after being sold to users. Carrier IQ says that it's working with manufacturers and carriers on the certification process for new devices to prevent the problem from happening again.
The whole situation surrounding Carrier IQ and its software seems to have snowballed into a bit of a mess as of late, but it's good to see the company come forward with a report on these issues that have cropped up. Still, you can't help but wonder if the all of the news that's come out since Trevor Eckhart's video began spreading across the Web has damaged the company and its reputation, even if some of the reports may have been sensationalized. We'll have to wait to see how things play out to know for sure. Until then, those of you interested in kicking off this fine Tuesday with some light reading can find Carrier IQ's full 19-page report on the ins and outs of its software at the source link below.
Via Gizmodo, The Verge, Carrier IQ (PDF)
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