Microsoft upgrades Surface tablets

23 September 2013 Last updated at 11:24 ET By Leo Kelion Technology reporter

Microsoft is updating its range of Surface tablets following weak sales of the original models.

The updates include faster processors and higher-resolution screens and cameras.

Both the ARM-based Windows RT version and Intel-powered Windows 8 edition are being upgraded.

The firm previously posted a $900m (£560m) writedown after building more of the first-generation RT versions than it could sell.

Analysts said demand for Microsoft's devices might continue to lag behind rival products.

However, they added that the firm's support for the product line was part of a long-term strategy that might ultimately pay off.

Windows-based tablets accounted for a 7% share of global shipments in the April-to-June quarter, according to a study by the tech advisory service Gartner.

By contrast, it said, Android-based tablets - including Samsung's Galaxy series, Android's Kindle Fires and Google's Nexus-branded range - had a 48% share, while Apple's iPads took 45% of the market.

Continue reading the main story

Despite poor sales for its Surface models - and a billion dollar writedown - Microsoft is showing it is still determined to be in the tablet game.

It was the Surface RT model which was the real problem, apparently failing to find an audience, while the Surface Pro did relatively well in its (high) price bracket.

So the big changes this time - a "fundamental revamp " in the words of Surface general manager Brian Hall - are in the RT, now known as Surface 2.

Mr Hall says almost every component has been replaced, resulting in a much faster yet thinner and lighter machine.

But the question remains - who is it for?

Not everybody, Microsoft admits, but a group of people who want to be able to mix work with play.

It is not competing on price with the growing range of Android tablets, so its sounds as though Microsoft is aiming at the same kind of people who use an iPad.

Mr Hall, though, sees it differently: "A lot of Androids are trying to do what iPad does at lower prices," he said, "but we want to make a unique contribution with productive tablets. When you think of Microsoft it's the combination of work and play."

The problem is that most Microsoft users seem to have felt that the original Surface was not playful enough, yet too flimsy to be a work machine.

In a world of falling PC sales, changing their minds is now the company's major challenge.

"Our outlook for the RT tablets is very low because consumers are still confused about what they are getting with the platform and we aren't seeing a big uptake in the business market," said Roberta Cozza, a research director at Gartner.

"The 'pro' [Intel-based] range may do a bit better. The release of a new docking station and other accessories will help.

"But they're still quite pricey so it's unlikely to be a huge leap forward."

Many were surprised when it was first revealed that Microsoft was going to make its own Windows hardware because of concern the move would damage sales of other manufacturers' PCs, encouraging them to focus efforts on rival platforms.

More memory

Both of the new tablets now feature displays capable of showing video in full 1080p high-definition resolution - a feature that was previously limited to the "pro" models.

The upgrade also sees the RT version gain a 3.5 megapixel front camera and a 5MP rear one - making them both capable of capturing 1080p video.

The pro mode, however, retains the 720p-resolution camera found in its predecessor.

The Intel-based version does get Intel's fourth-generation Core i5 processor, which Microsoft said should help it attain 60% better battery life than the first model.

Buyers also get the option of more memory than before with up to 512GB of storage and up to 8GB of Ram - allowing them to run more programs at once.

The RT version becomes one of the first devices to be powered by Nvidia's ARM-based Tegra 4 processor and now features a USB 3 port for faster file transfers. Microsoft said it should attain up to 10 hours of video playback.

Both models stick with a 10.6in (26.9cm) display, confounding rumours that the US firm would seek to launch a model to compete with the smaller iPad Mini and Nexus 7.

In addition, Microsoft has unveiled a thinner and lighter Touch Cover keyboard, which now has backlit keys, and promises to release a £165 docking station for the pro model next year to make it easier to attach it to an external monitor and other peripherals.

The RT Surface will cost between £359 and £439 while the cheapest pro models will be between £719 and £1,439 depending on the configuration. In both cases that is more expensive than prices for the original editions.

Retaining RT

Microsoft's decision to persevere with an ARM-based model comes despite the earlier writedown and complaints that the platform cannot run legacy software.

That means some high-profile programs are unavailable, including iTunes, the Chrome and Firefox browsers, the full version of Photoshop, many popular video games and many existing in-house software programs used by companies.

Taiwanese firm Asus announced in July that it was putting off plans to launch more RT devices because of this issue. Samsung, Acer and Lenovo have also shied away from the platform, although Dell continues to support it.

Using ARM-based chips does reduce costs and offer longer battery life. One expert suggested Microsoft might also want to keep RT alive to give it the option of merging it with its handset operating system at a later point.

"It's a long-term plan," said Chris Green, principal technology analyst at the Davies Murphy Group consultancy.

"It's about establishing a platform that could take four or five years to succeed in a similar way to the fact that early versions of Android didn't set the world on fire, but after its third or fourth iteration it became dominant and liked.

"However, running what are effectively three separate Windows platforms is fairly illogical and expensive, so I believe Microsoft will ultimately merge Windows RT with Windows Phone."

The release of the new Surface models is Microsoft's first hardware announcement since it revealed a 5.4bn-euro ($7.2bn; £4.6bn) planned takeover of Nokia's hardware division.

There are unconfirmed reports that the Finnish firm has been developing a Windows RT tablet of its own.

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Cyber-blackmailers 'abuse hundreds'

20 September 2013 Last updated at 07:22 ET

Hundreds of British children are being blackmailed into performing sex acts online, the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre has warned.

Abusers posing online as children talk victims into sexual acts or sharing of images, then threaten to send pictures to the child's family and friends.

Ceop said in 12 cases over two years, 424 children had been blackmailed in this way - 184 of them in the UK.

Deputy chief executive Andy Baker said the abuse "escalates really quickly".

He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that it could take as little as four minutes "to go from, 'Hi, do you want to get naked?', to self-harming".

Seven victims have killed themselves, including a 17-year-old in the UK.

Another seven seriously self-harmed, of whom six were from the UK.

Mr Baker said: "We're talking about a very small dark percentage of [the internet] and this is what we need to police".

Daniel Perry, from Dunfermline, Fife, took his own life in the summer after blackmailers demanded thousands of pounds having tricked him into thinking he was chatting with a US girl.

'Slave-like acts'

He was told that his video conversations would be spread among friends and family unless he paid cash. Other victims have been told their activities would be shared unless they performed more extreme acts.

Continue reading the main story

Of all the recent developments involving the internet this is one of the most disturbing.

The perpetrators are usually calculating, computer-savvy men aged between 20 and 44; some act alone, others as part of an organised network. Their motives are more than just sexual - they want control, and in some cases money.

The victims are girls and boys, unwittingly drawn into the paedophiles' net by the possibility of friendship or consensual sexual contact.

Adolescents are particularly vulnerable as it's natural for them to explore their emerging sexuality or engage in risky behaviour - but few can imagine the dangers that their innocent internet chat may lead to.

As well as catching the offenders, investigators say children and parents must be made aware of the risks.

In the 12 cases highlighted by Ceop, the abusers came from four continents and in five cases the criminals were based in the UK.

Children as young as eight had been forced to perform "slave-like acts", said Mr Baker. As well as the performance of sex acts, the abuse sometimes involved being forced to self-harm and there had been a few attempts to extort money.

Experts highlighted the accessibility of the English language and foreign abusers' perceptions about the liberal nature of UK society as reasons for the targeting of British children.

Mr Baker said thousands of British children could have been approached in attempts to instigate abuse.

While only a handful of children will respond, thousands are exposed to the risk, he said.

Ceop operations manager Stephanie McCourt said: "First of all it's the English language. They are able to threaten the children if they can communicate to them. English is a really popular universal language.

"Second of all, the offenders have actually said that because they perceive the UK as a very free and open and liberal society, they think that they will have more success in targeting UK children."

The biggest case, known as Operation K, involved 322 children around the world being blackmailed, including 96 in the UK.

The victims were mainly boys aged 11 to 15, who were targeted by a gang from a non-European country. The suspects are due to stand trial in the coming weeks.

Fake profiles

The gang used more than 40 fake online profiles and more than 40 different email addresses to carry out their abuse.

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Scott Freeman: "You need to educate your children"

The network of abuse was exposed after a social networking site noticed suspicious activity and a British child told their parents.

Set up in 2006 in affiliation with the Serious Organised Crime Agency, Ceop is a police agency dedicated to protecting children from sexual abuse.

Ceop said warning signs that a child was being subjected to online abuse could include them becoming aggressive, withdrawn, or self-harming.

But in Daniel Perry's case it appears there were no warning signs.

His mother told reporters after his death: "He was a happy laddie, not depressed and the last type of person you would think would take their life... We're a very close family and I just wished he had come to me and said something."

The apprentice mechanic had been having online conversations with someone he believed to be a girl around his own age.

Just before his death, he was warned by the blackmailers that he would be better off dead if he did not transfer the cash. Less than an hour after replying to the message, he fell from the Forth Road Bridge.

Scott Freeman, the founder of cyberbullying charity Cybersmile, told the BBC it was important for parents to educate themselves and their children about the internet - particularly online privacy settings and the procedures available for reporting incidents.

He said: "Don't talk to people you don't know, don't move from the platform onto more private platforms."

Internet providers could do more to tackle abuse, Mr Freeman said, but he added: "We've started to see some of them take responsibility now and they've started to put procedures in place so hopefully things are moving in the right direction."

Abuse can be reported to Ceop online at www.ceop.police.uk, via the NSPCC helpline's on 0800 328 0904, or to police

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Microsoft boss admits phone failings

20 September 2013 Last updated at 13:05 ET

Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer, who has announced he will be stepping down, admitted his company was too slow to react to the smartphone era.

The chief executive was talking to an audience of Wall Street investors and analysts.

He blamed a focus on developing its Windows operating system for letting mobile opportunities slip by.

However, he said the company now has significant opportunities in the market.

The firm has recently purchased the mobile phone unit of Nokia, a move that will allow it to speed up development on its Windows Phone platform.

The market is currently dominated by products from Apple, with its iPhone and iPad, and Google's Android platform which is used by many manufacturers such as Samsung and LG to power their devices.

Microsoft, by comparison, is a very distant third.

Surface tension

"I regret that there was a period in the early 2000s when we were so focused on what we had to do around Windows that we weren't able to redeploy talent to the new device called the phone," Mr Ballmer said.

"That is the thing I regret the most. It would have been better for Windows and our success in other foreign factors."

On the plus side, Mr Ballmer said, from the Windows Phone's "almost no share" position the only way was up.

On Monday, the company will unveil the second generation of its Surface tablet.

The first Surface, released in October 2012, has sold poorly.

In July the company said it had written off $900m (£560m) in unsold Surface stock.

Mr Ballmer admitted at the time: "We built a few more devices than we could sell."

It was widely speculated that the failure accelerated Mr Ballmer's departure from the company, which will happen within 12 months. A successor has not yet been announced.

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Google revamps logo and search page

19 September 2013 Last updated at 18:23 ET By Leo Kelion Technology reporter

Google has begun rolling out a redesign of its homepage - the world's most visited web address.

The revamp features a flattened, reshaped logo and replaces the previous menu bar with a smaller range of links on the page's right-hand side.

The move comes in the same month that Yahoo's logo and Microsoft's Bing search tool have also been updated.

A Google spokeswoman said that similar changes would now be "slowly rolled out" across its products.

A blog post added that the firm intended to "streamline" users' experience of its services to prevent "distractions".

It is the first change to Google's logo since 2010. Not all users will be able to see the redesign yet.

"This is the season for consumer tech updates and whether you sell a product or it's free everyone wants to look fresh ahead of the Christmas shopping season," said Sarah Rotman Epps, an analyst at the tech consultancy Forrester.

"What they are doing is actually pretty subtle and that's because these software companies depend on user loyalty - they don't want to do anything that would alienate their customers."

Another analyst suggested that cutting down the number of links would encourage people to use Google's social network, Google Plus.

To reveal other products - such as Google Drive storage, YouTube videos or the Android app Play Store - visitors to the firm's search page must now click on an icon made up of small squares.

"I do think that there is a move to try to make Google+ more central to everything its users do," said Carolina Milanesi from the tech advisors Gartner.

"It might be the case that it is not obvious to some people that they need to click on the box to reveal the firm's other services."

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Tesco enters tablet fray with Hudl

23 September 2013 Last updated at 05:29 ET

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Rory Cellan-Jones test-drives Tesco's new device

It's a place you might go to for tomatoes, tea or tinned tuna - but would you really go to Tesco in search of a tablet computer? The supermarket chain is confident that its shoppers will see the attractions of getting into the tablet game via a well-known brand.

But what does the arrival of the Hudl - for that is the name of the product the company is launching this morning - mean for the overall market?

What is immediately clear is that Tesco is taking its tablet very seriously. Unlike some cheap Android tablets launched by other unlikely firms - remember Next's attempt? - this looks a competitive and reasonably high-spec offering. It runs the latest version of Android, has a 1.5 GHz processor, an HD screen and expandable storage.

The 7in device looks at first sight like any other small Android tablet - the Tesco content is mostly hidden under a "T" logo at the bottom left. Tapping here takes you to services like online shopping and the Blinkbox on-demand film service, bought by Tesco a couple of years ago.

So where will it fit into an increasingly competitive market? From the Google Nexus 7 to the Amazon Kindle Fire, there is now plenty of choice in the £100-£200 range. The Hudl at £119 should compete well here - though it probably needs to be that cheap to make up for the fact that many consumers won't see it as a recognised electronics brand.

What is really significant about this new arrival is the way tablets are now becoming everyday devices, just three years after Apple launched the iPad and kick-started this revolution. Some forecasters now see sales of tablets overtaking sales of PCs by the end of this year.

Lower prices will accelerate that trend, though I'm still slightly puzzled by how Tesco can make any profit on the Hudl when it is priced at £119. After all, Amazon's Jeff Bezos told us last year that the Kindle Fire HD - at £159 - made not a penny in profit for his company. But Matt Atkinson, Tesco's chief marketing officer, told me that his product would definitely be commercially viable.

I suppose that each time a new entrant comes into the market they find that the components have become just a little cheaper, so they can offer similar products to the established players at a keener price.

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Tesco is set to launch a budget tablet computer

You might think that would spell trouble for the market leader Apple, but it has managed to keep on selling iPads very profitably despite the yawning price gap opening up with rival Android devices. The Apple brand remains very desirable - and the company won't have too many worries about its shrinking share of the market as long as it can keep profit margins high.

The other company which has tried to compete at the top end of the market, with tablets which aim to be work machines as well as playthings, is Microsoft. So far, its Surface has failed to make much of an impact on the market, with the company writing off $1bn after missing sales targets. But the company which first showed off the Tablet PC concept in 2001 - whatever happened to that? - isn't giving up. Tonight Microsoft will be unveiling two new Surface tablets - the firm which built its fortunes on the PC revolution knows that it must be part of this new wave of computing.

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Eight held over £1.3m bank heist

20 September 2013 Last updated at 08:42 ET

Eight men have been arrested in connection with a £1.3m theft by a gang who took control of a Barclays Bank computer.

The money was transferred from the branch in Swiss Cottage in north London in April, a Met Police spokesman said.

Searches are being carried out at addresses across London where property including cash, jewellery, drugs and credit cards has been seized.

The raid is being linked to an attempt to steal from Santander last week.

Four men have appeared in court charged with attempting to take control of computers at a Santander branch in Surrey Quays, south-east London.

Det Supt Terry Wilson said the Barclays investigation was being carried out by the same police team.

However he said the latest arrests "are a different level, it's really the top tier of this criminal network that have been arrested".

He added: "This was a highly-organised criminal network with each individual filling a specific role.

"All criminal networks have a head and we very much believe we have now apprehended our 'Mr Big' as part of this operation."

The men, aged between 24 and 47, were arrested on Thursday and Friday.

Following the report of the theft, police found a "keyboard video mouse" (KVM) switch attached to one of the branch's computers.

It had had been placed there by a man purporting to be an IT engineer the day before the theft on 5 April.

Infiltrate and exploit

A KVM switch, which has a 3G router attached, allows a user to control multiple computers. This enabled the gang to remotely transfer funds to other back accounts.

Barclays said it was able to recover a "significant amount" of the stolen money.

One central London premises which has been searched was described by detectives as the "control" centre for the fraudsters.

"Those responsible are significant players within a sophisticated and determined organised criminal network, who used considerable technical abilities and traditional criminal know-how to infiltrate and exploit secure banking systems," Det Insp Mark Raymond of the Met's Central e-Crime Unit said.

Alex Grant from Barclays said: "Barclays has no higher priority than the protection and security of our customers against the actions of would-be fraudsters.

"We identified the fraud and acted swiftly to recover funds on the same day. We can confirm that no customers suffered financial loss as a result of this action."

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Vigilante case sex abuser jailed

20 September 2013 Last updated at 12:09 ET

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Video filmed by Letzgo Hunting showed them confronting James Stone

A child abuser from Nottingham who was confronted by anti-paedophile activists has been jailed for eight years.

Nottingham Crown Court heard James Stone, 24, of Upper Parliament Street, admitted seven offences including sexual activity with a child.

Stone was filmed by a group called Letzgo Hunting after members posed as a schoolgirl during web chats.

But police said the footage played no part in the case and they acted after the victim's mother contacted them.

Letzgo Hunting said they became involved after the 15-year-old girl's mother came to them over grooming concerns.

Posing as a 14 year old, the group swapped messages with Stone in which he admitted engaging in sexual activity with the girl.

'Wanted my mum'

Members then confronted Stone at the pub where he worked.

Police said he admitted posing as a 16-year-old boy in an online chat room in a bid to contact the girl.

Continue reading the main story

Violence wasn't necessary because you had groomed her so well"

End Quote Judge Joan Butler QC

When the conversation moved to instant messaging, he took her to his flat where she was manipulated into performing sexual acts.

Stone pleaded guilty in court to meeting a child following sexual grooming, two counts of sexual assault with a child, one count of sexual activity with a child, two counts of possession of indecent photographs of a child and one count of possessing an extreme pornographic image.

The CPS said that as he admitted his guilt early in the proceedings, no evidence from Letzgo Hunting was presented in court.

Prosecuting, Tina Dempster told the court Stone had asked the girl for sexual photos of herself and when they met in March had led her to believe they would be going to a cinema or restaurant.

She added: "They sat and watched films on his bed before he forced her to perform sexual acts on him.

"The girl said she was scared and too frightened to say too much."

'Hiding in phone'

In interviews the teenager told police: "He hadn't respected me or anything. I felt numb. I didn't know what to do. I was frightened. I just wanted my mum at the time."

In mitigation, Adrian Langdale said Stone had "suffered a trial by public jury in many ways" after video footage of him from Letzgo Hunting was put online.

He added: "Already his name has been made widely public.

"He has been pilloried from the beginning to the end and he has been incarcerated for his own protection because of threats from the group and other individuals."

Sentencing him, Judge Joan Butler QC said Stone had taken advantage of a girl lacking in self-esteem and "went about a campaign of grooming".

"I accept you didn't force her and you didn't use any violence but that wasn't necessary because you had groomed her so well," she said.

"An organisation became involved and got in contact with you and pretended to be young girls. You were grooming them in the same way as you had groomed the complainant in this case."

Speaking after sentencing, police cautioned against vigilante activity.

'Hunting suspended'

A spokesperson for Nottinghamshire Police said: "We're seeing a worrying increase in those who think they can take the law into their own hands when it comes to these types of internet grooming cases.

"Posting videos online of alleged offenders not only risks the safety of that person and their family, but can also compromise any subsequent criminal proceedings."

Det Insp Martin Hillier from Nottinghamshire Police, who led the case, said it was important for people to report offences such as Stone's to the police.

He added: "James Stone not only preyed upon his young victim under the guise of a schoolboy, he did it in the family home and during school time, under the noses of the adults in her life, because James Stone was hiding in her mobile phone.

"He groomed and manipulated her into doing things she would never do, before luring her to his home and taking advantage of her in the very worst way."

Letzgo Hunting previously denied any blame for the death of Gary Cleary, who was found hanged at his Leicestershire home on 13 May after the group gathered evidence he was a sex offender.

On Thursday, Letzgo Hunting put a statement on its Facebook page that it had "suspended all hunting activity" indefinitely.

An Inside Out documentary on Letzgo Hunting will be broadcast on BBC One in the Midlands on Monday 23 September at 19:30 BST.

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RSA in NSA algorithm link warning

23 September 2013 Last updated at 07:30 ET

RSA, the internet security firm, has advised its customers not to use a particular encryption algorithm after fears it could be unlocked by the US National Security Agency (NSA).

In an advisory note to its developer customers, RSA said that a community-developed algorithm in one of its toolkits could contain a vulnerability.

It "strongly recommends" switching to other random number generators instead.

The warning came from the US National Institute of Standards and Technology.

The advice comes in the wake of New York Times allegations that the NSA may have intentionally introduced a flaw into the algorithm - known as Dual Elliptic Curve Deterministic Random Bit Generation - and then tried to get it adopted as a security standard by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology.

Privacy

In the 1990s, the NSA tried to claim the right to unlock all encryption systems, but lost the battle after privacy rights and freedom of speech advocates objected.

The NSA maintains that it needs to be able to decipher encrypted communications to protect the US against terrorism and organised crime.

As the documents leaked by the former government security contractor Edward Snowden have demonstrated, the NSA has been intercepting communications data from all over the world through its Prism surveillance programme.

But it is locked in a continuous battle with cryptographers who are developing increasingly sophisticated security systems.

One of the NSA's tactics has been to persuade leading technology companies, such as Microsoft and Google, to co-operate with the security services in providing access to user data. Privacy rights campaigners have been concerned over how far this co-operation may extend.

Under US law, service providers have to hand over user data to the NSA but are not allowed to publish how many security-related data requests they receive.

A growing number of providers are beginning to stand up to the government and demand more transparency.

For example, the Digital Due Process Coalition, which is calling for reform of the 1986 US Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), includes companies such as Apple, Google, Facebook, Amazon, Linkedin and Microsoft.

The coalition argues that the ECPA has been outpaced by the rapid rise of the internet and the explosion of digital data.

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Apple fingerprint ID 'hacked'

23 September 2013 Last updated at 06:33 ET

Hackers claim to have broken Apple's iPhone 5S Touch ID fingerprint recognition system just a day after the phone was launched.

Germany's Chaos Computer Club claims it "successfully bypassed the biometric security of Apple's Touch ID using easy everyday means".

By photographing a fingerprint left on a glass surface and creating a fake finger they were able to unlock the phone, the hackers claim.

But Apple maintains Touch ID is secure.

On its website the iPhone maker says there is a one in 50,000 chance of two separate fingerprints being alike and the technology provides "a very high level of security".

Karsten Nohl, chief scientist at SRLabs, a German hacking think tank, told the BBC: "It would have been incredible if Apple had managed to do something the rest of the biometrics industry has failed to achieve after decades of trying, so I'm not surprised it was hacked after just one day.

"Claiming this system offers a high level of security is just ridiculous," he added.

Convenience

Apple does not suggest that Touch ID is a total replacement for traditional passcode security, simply a more convenient way of unlocking the phone.

"Touch ID is designed to minimise the input of your passcode; but your passcode will be needed for additional security validation," Apple says.

But it does not address the ability of hackers lifting individual prints and creating fake fingers, as the Chaos Computer Club claims to have done.

Mr Nohl says a five-digit password would be more secure than a fingerprint and believes Apple should have focused on convenience rather than security in its marketing of the Touch ID feature.

On Friday, an influential US senator called for Apple to answer "substantial privacy questions" arising from the technology.

Apple did not respond to the BBC's request for a comment.

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BBM launch thwarted by app leak

23 September 2013 Last updated at 08:44 ET

Blackberry has temporarily halted the rollout of its free Messenger service for Android and Apple devices after the software was leaked.

A version of the Android app was posted online on Friday - a day ahead of its scheduled launch - and was subsequently shared via the Crackberry forum.

Blackberry had already begun publishing the iPhone edition in some nations when it announced that the unofficial app was causing it unspecified "issues".

It paused the rollout as a result.

"Our teams continue to work around the clock to bring BBM to Android and iPhone, but [will release it] only when it's ready and we know it will live up to your expectations," Blackberry social media manager Luke Reimer wrote in a blog.

For the time being, iPhone owners in Australia, India, Malaysia and other countries where the software was briefly made available can continue using the service. However, the company said it had disabled the problematic Android app.

Continue reading the main story

Blackberry Messenger began life as a simple instant messaging tool offering owners of the firm's handsets a free alternative to SMS texts.

Over the years the company has added functions including sending pictures, audio messages and other files as well as making voice and video calls, all over the internet.

In addition it offers a Groups facility, which allows users to share photos, lists and calendar appointments with trusted contacts.

A recent addition is Channels - a feature allowing brands and celebrities to send news and status updates to users who want to follow them through the app.

It is the latest bad news for the company, which announced last week that it was cutting 4,500 jobs and warned it would post as much as a $995m (£621m) loss when it reported its second-quarter earnings this week.

The company offered no further comment when asked by the BBC what issues had been caused by the app leak.

Software strategy

Blackberry has struggled of late to keep pace with Apple and products running Google's Android operating system. Globally it now also lags behind Microsoft's Windows Phone ecosystem in terms of sales.

Despite this, its Blackberry Messenger product - known as BBM - has stood out as a major success.

The software offers an alternative to SMS messages - which cost money on some subscription plans - as well as other voice and screen-sharing facilities. It has proven to be especially popular with younger phone owners.

The app rollout is intended to address competition from Whatsapp, Viber and Skype which offer similar facilities and work across different mobile platforms.

Some analysts had warned that by allowing its software to run on rival handsets Blackberry might make its own handsets appear less attractive to the public.

However, that has become a moot point following the firm's announcement on Friday that it was going to exit the consumer market and focus instead on selling services to business customers.

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