Dubai: An interceptor software attached to the patch that etisalat issued for its BlackBerry users last week is the cause of the rapid drainage of battery and heating of the phone, Gulf News has learned.
A number of BlackBerry users complained about overheating and rapid battery drain in their devices after they installed the 'performance enhancing' patch. Etisalat has since stopped the patch, but would not comment on the software's installation.
Programming experts have said the battery drain problem has been caused by interceptor software included in the patch by a company called SS8, which specialises in such programs.
The company did not respond to Gulf News requests for a comment.
Interception is not known to be illegal and is believed to be used by a number of operators in various countries.
Nigel Gourlay, a computer programmer based in Doha, analysed the code and said that the interceptor software is installed, but deactivated by default. The slowness caused on etisalat BlackBerry devices is due to the device trying to send etisalat servers a confirmation message once the patch and interceptor software are installed.
If all devices send the confirmation message at the same time, the operator's servers could slow down, in which case the device keeps trying to send the confirmation, resulting in a battery drain.
After a confirmation is successfully sent by the BlackBerry device to etisalat, the device waits for a message from etisalat to activate the interceptor software.
In doing so, the device checks every incoming message for the command to activate the software.
That is perhaps the stage that most devices experiencing battery drain are in now, having received the patch and confirmed it, and checking every new incoming message for the command to activate.
According to Gourlay, if and when the command is received, the software sends every subsequent opened message to etisalat.
"Where etisalat went wrong was by not making this process invisible. We wouldn't have known about this if it wasn't for the battery drain," he said.
He added that the software was also designed to protect itself from removal. It tracks changes to the system configuration and if it detects any, it uninstalls then reinstalls itself.
An IT expert who preferred to remain anonymous told Gulf News that interception was not uncommon and that "almost every electronic device connected to the internet is subject to interception, including Microsoft Windows".
It is unclear if the UAE's second operator, du, also installs interception software on its devices. Du did not respond to Gulf News' questions by the time of going to print.
FAQ: Unavoidable problem
What is interceptor software? It is a piece of code which allows data from your phone to be accessed and gathered by third party companies.
Is interceptor software legal? Yes it is and companies which specialise in the implementation of interceptor software work closely with governments around the world.
What is it used for? It is simply used for collecting information from the phone, however how that data is used (commercially and by governments) differs depending on where you are in the world and what laws exist.
Is there a way to avoid having the software installed on your phone? You could simply avoid downloading the patch which was sent to you, but the fact is that most phones will have monitoring software pre-installed when you buy it. Removing the software might even cause your phone to cease functioning.
Can I turn it off? No, although some experts say you could add an application which intercepts/blocks the communication to the software.
Will buying a new phone or battery solve the problem? That is unlikely. This seems to be solely a software issue.
Did you raise any problems with the patch with etisalat? Was the issue resolved? How has your work been affected due to the reduced battery life?
Your comments
Can I correct it by wiping the device?
Chandran T
Dubai,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 10:52
Did anyone find a solution for this issue? Every 2 hours the battery drains and the phone switches off.
Georges
Dubai,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 10:22
the interceptor software is a breach of privacy, this shouldnt be allowed... i dont know why this is required. I will think twice before buying a phone or a Blackberry now.
Kamlesh
Dubai,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 10:12
I 'am on call at work and i must be reached 24 hours, and my battery want last till 9:00 P.M after this patch!!! now i have to walk with two phones to avoid this issue !!
Sharif Ahmad
Ruwais,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 10:05
Will "wiping" or formatting the Blackberry help? This is what ETisalat suggested when I called 101.
Shakur
Dubai,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 09:58
I am facing the same problem with my Blackberry Storm. I was thinking of the problem due to the defective battery. The "Gulf News" guided me to the coorect cause of the fault. Today I called Etisalat and requested for solution. They suggested to remove the battery without switching off the equipment and fix it back after 5 minutes. I tried it and waiting to see the result. Anybody facing the same problem can try this.
James Cyriac
Abu Dhabi,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 09:54
I installed the patch last week and have had several battery problems including excessive heat given off from the handset and total battery discharge over night. I called Etisalat Customer Services yesterday afternoon after reading about the problem in Gulf News and was told all affected numbers were being collated and a solution would be available after Engineers, and possibly an independent IT Company, had studied the problem, in the meantime there was nothing that could be done!
I asked to speak to a senior person there and eventually I was put through to the Blackberry Service Desk where a very understanding guy explained that if I removed my battery whilst the unit was switched on and left it disconnected for several minutes and then replaced the battery it may ease the problem. This had been carried out by other users and in some cases had overcome the problem. I tried it and it did work my battery has stayed good now for over 20 hours without a recharge. So if you have a battery problem with your Blackberry try this solution first. Many thanks to the guy!
Steve
Dubai,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 09:43
Its 1month since i have bought this blackberry from etisalat and not even a single day i have used it without any problem. i keep calling 101 and no reply. who can fix the problem if not etisalat?
Shagufta
Dubai,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 09:38
yes,the same thing you mention,battery drain,and telephone heat up,I traveled to dubai yesterday and get my phone formatted by aximtelecom,resulting in losing all my data,and just wasting one day,I wonder why etislat didnt check this software before sending it and do we have the right for compensation
regards
H Al Qaderi
Al Ain,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 09:36
A Phone instrument is a personal device and no one should have rights to capture information from it unless there is a wrong doing. We pay heavily for the services, the instrument and stil we have the service provider interfering. Etisalat should avoid this practice.
Bruno
Dubai,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 09:36
Please note that I am suffering since 3 days. I can't talk to anyone. I am out of station with my emails. That's crazy. How will this be solved. Yesterday I spent 200DHS in Compu Me on resting my Blackberry and it didn't work at all. Is Etisalat going to fix that problem?
Serge Eldfouni
Dubai,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 09:34
Etisalat is a reputable compnay,a leader in the market,this is not acceptable at all.Customer Service is not helping at all,it took mne 4 days to reach them!and the answer i got is simply wipe your device!do i need as a customer to do all this because of a technical problem?i dont think so.
it's not the first time am not satified from Etisalat,when i purchased my device in May my line was Wasel and i benefited back then from a 3 months free subscription,then i switched to post paid and for a reason i ignore the blackberry service stopped working and i was told it's because of switching to post paid,the device remained without blackberry service for 5 days,i went to Etisalat many times and at the end they told me in order to reactivate the blackberry service i need to subscribe and thats how i was no more eligible to the 3 months subscription!
Omar
Dubai,Lebanon
Posted: July 14, 2009, 09:12
Even you can not sent online complaint from Etisalat Web adress.
Such a great service in 21 Century
Mabrooook!
Bulent
Dubai,UAE
Posted: July 14, 2009, 09:11
