![\"IDF](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1764488653_843_0x0.jpg\")
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All change for IDF phone calls.<\/p>\n
AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n
Updated Nov. 30 with a new cyber attack targeting Israel\u2019s smartphones.<\/p>\n
So this is interesting. Just weeks after Google\u2019s campaign to promote Android as being more secure than iPhone, the smartphone battle has taken a sudden twist. The Israeli military has decided to ban Android phones for senior officers, on security grounds.<\/p>\n
The news was broken by Israel\u2019s Army Radio and picked up by The Jerusalem Post<\/a>. \u201cUnder the expected order, commanders from the rank of lieutenant colonel and above will be permitted to use only iPhones for official communications. The step is aimed at reducing the risk of intrusions on senior officers\u2019 handsets, according to the report.\u201d<\/p>\n ForbesFeds Warn iPhone And Android Users\u2014Stop Using Your VPNBy Zak Doffman<\/a><\/p>\n Even before the current conflict with Hamas and expanding regional skirmishes, there had been multiple reports of “honey pot<\/a>” attacks targeting Israeli soldiers, to compromise devices and exfiltrate valuable data, including troop locations.<\/p>\n Ironically, just last month Google trumpeted<\/a> Pixel\u2019s inclusion on the U.S. Department of Defense\u2019s Information Network (DoDIN) approval list. \u201cGoogle Pixel phones are built on a foundation of mission-ready resilience and intelligent security that is seamlessly integrated into the Google ecosystem,” the company said.<\/p>\n Google describes this new certification as a \u201csignificant milestone that underscores our commitment to providing federal agencies with secure, cutting-edge technology.\u201d Given the progress Google has made in locking down Android, especially with Android 16 and its Advanced Protection Mode, this will be disappointing headline news.<\/p>\n Only iPhone and Samsung had made the list beforehand. Google said Pixels \u201care the highest rated for security features empowering government employees to securely connect and collaborate from virtually anywhere\u2014even the most remote environments.\u201d<\/p>\n Not according to the IDF. This move “follows earlier efforts<\/a> to harden mobile use,\u201d The Post says, \u201cincluding training and internal drills designed to raise officers\u2019 awareness of social-engineering tactics. In recent years, the IDF even staged scenarios mimicking Hezbollah-linked \u201choneypots\u201d to stress-test units\u2019 digital discipline.\u201d<\/p>\n Israel National News<\/a> reports that \u201cin addition, the new guidelines are expected to ban the use of any military cellphone that is not an iPhone. Android devices will be permitted for personal use but prohibited from any operational or command purposes.\u201d<\/p>\n Google has significantly changed Android in the last 18 to 24 months, shoring up its defenses to better compete with iPhone. The next stage of this is the move to restrict sideloading<\/a> from next year. But as a locked down ecosystem, iPhone still wins out.<\/p>\n The acute cyber balancing act playing out in the Middle East has not slowed down, irregardless of the ebbs and flows in the physical battles taking place on the ground.<\/p>\n ForbesMicrosoft Confirms Windows Password Failure\u2014No Fix AvailableBy Zak Doffman<\/a><\/p>\n