U.S. Government, Military to Use Customized Android Devices

The United States government will soon begin deploying customized Android OS-powered mobile devices to federal agency and military officials, according to a CNN report. Government researchers are currently developing a modified version of Google's Android software, which will enable soldiers and federal employees to safely manage and send classified documents.

Project leaders considered using Apple devices, but the company wouldn't authorize access to the core of its mobile operating system, a key requirement in the government's plan to improve security on devices.

"Android was more cooperative in supporting some of the capabilities that we wanted to support in the operating system, whereas Apple was more averse," Angelos Stavrou, an information security expert working on the project as a contractor, told the source. "They're shifting the strategy now."

The report said the government's version of Android's open-source operating system will allow its administrators to choose which data can be transmitted and accessed by applications. Researchers will test every application for security vulnerabilities before users are allowed to download it, Stavrou told the source.

The project is another significant gain for Android, which garnered 47.3 percent of the U.S. smartphone market share as of December, according to research firm comScore.