BlackBerry talked up the security credentials of its anticipated Priv smartphone, stating that the Android-powered device “offers a no-compromise user experience to privacy-minded consumers and enterprises”.

In a blog post, the company said that it has “performed extensive surgery under the hood to augment Android’s privacy and security capabilities”. It also sees the adoption of BlackBerry’s picture login, which debuted with BlackBerry OS 10.2.1, which it said offers “the best combination of security strength and ease of use for any smartphone authentication scheme available on any mobile device today”.

It touted support for its WatchDox private file sharing, BBM, BBM Meetings and SecuSuite private voice call applications, noting that its “communications suites have no back doors and use certified cryptography from BlackBerry Certicom”.

BlackBerry also said it has built “privacy monitoring hooks” into Android to provide feedback and control over how applications use security-critical device resources.

And the company also said that privacy and security is “about much more than just the device”, citing its “world-renowned security incident response and research teams”, and that its vulnerability patch programme is “second to none in the industry”.