The most recognizable whistleblower on the planet, Edward Snowden, launched an app to give the private citizens more power in protecting themselves and their property. This security application is called 'haven'. Haven is an open-source project that Snowden developed in conjunction with Freedom of the Press Foundation and Guardian Project. Haven is an Android application that leverages on-device sensors to provide monitoring and protection of physical spaces. The Haven app turns any Android phone into a high-powered security device that uses all of the device’s capabilities to protect against attacks big and small. It records video, sound, vibration, and detects motion and changes in light, and watch unexpected guests and unwanted intruders.
It designed with the world’s most secure communications technologies, like Signal and Tor, Haven prevents the worst kind of people from silencing citizens without getting caught in the act.
“We designed Haven for investigative journalists, human rights defenders, and people at risk of forced disappearance to create a new kind of herd immunity.”
The sensors in your Android smartphone or tablet's such as an accelerometer, camera, microphone, light sensor, and ability to detect when a power supply is plugged in or removed.
- Accelerometer: phone’s motion and vibration
- Camera: motion in the phone’s visible surroundings from front or back camera
- Microphone: noises in the environment
- Light: change in light from ambient light sensor
- Power: detect device being unplugged or power loss
Haven only saves images and sound when triggered by motion or volume, and stores everything locally on the device. You can position the device’s camera to capture visible motion.It already has some incredibly vital features including the ability to access activity logs remotely. You can leave the app running in your hotel room, for instance, and it can capture photos and audio of anyone entering the room while you're out, whether an innocent housekeeper or an intelligence agent trying to use his alone time with your laptop to install spyware on it. Haven could then be set to broadcast any audio or movement, it will snap a photo, record audio and detect motion. Alerts can be sent via SMS, Signal or to a Tor-based website.
Application’s main view allows the user to set which sensors to use and the corresponding level of sensitivity. A security code must be provided, needed to disable monitoring. A phone number can be set, if any of the sensors is triggered a message is sent to the specified number. In practice, Haven could protect its users from more than just hands-on computer hackers; it could guard against everyone from abusive spouses to authoritarian police.
The reason for not support to iOS devices
Haven only works with Android devices for now. The project's website notes that iOS support is a hope for the future.
While we hope to support a version of Haven that runs directly on iOS devices in the future, iPhone users can still benefit from Haven today. You can purchase an inexpensive Android phone for less than $100, and use that as your “Haven Device”, that you leave behind, while you keep your iPhone with you.
So, no, iPhone users we didn’t forget about you, and hope you’ll pick up an Android burner today for a few bucks!
You can configure Haven on Android to send encrypted notifications, with photos and audio, directly to you. If you enable the “Tor Onion Service” feature in Haven (requires installing “Orbot” app as well), you can remotely access all Haven log data from your iPhone, using the Onion Browser app.
You may like to read : 6 Features to Tick While Choosing an Ideal Analytic Solution for Your App
You may like to read : 6 Features to Tick While Choosing an Ideal Analytic Solution for Your App