BlackBerry 850/857 and BlackBerry 950/957 Cryptographic Kernel
BlackBerry 850/857 and BlackBerry 950/957 Cryptographic Kernel, from Research In Motion Ltd., holds FIPS 140-1 certificate #137 at overall level 1. The validation is historical: agencies may keep the module in existing systems but not buy it new. Below are its validation history, algorithm certificates and security policy, drawn from the NIST CMVP entry.
Caveat: When operated in FIPS mode
Certificate
| Certificate number | 137 |
|---|---|
| Standard | FIPS 140-1 |
| Status | historical |
| Overall level | 1 |
| Module type | Firmware |
| Embodiment | Multi-chip standalone |
| Vendor | Research In Motion Ltd. · website |
| Firmware versions | 2.1 |
Module description
Quoted from the NIST CMVP entry for this certificate.
The BlackBerry crypto firmware v2.1, common to both the BlackBerry 850/857 and the BlackBerry 950/957, securely compresses and encrypts messages with Triple-DES. Following this procedure, the ciphertext is transmitted over the Internet to the recipient mail server. Upon receiving the message, the mail server decrypts and decompresses the ciphertext back to the original plaintext. The BlackBerry crypto firmware is messaging-system independent.
Approved algorithms (2)
Validation history
| Date | Type | Lab |
|---|---|---|
| 2001-03-01 | Initial | DOMUS |
| 2002-06-03 | Update | |
| 2005-08-24 | Update |
Status timeline
As observed by this tracker's snapshots. NIST publishes no dates for list moves; observation began 2026-08-21, so earlier changes carry no date.
- 2026-08-21: first observed by this tracker, status historical
- Validation dates on record: 2001-03-01, 2002-06-03, 2005-08-24