mSeven Software has released a new iPhone app called mSecure, which acts as a data and password manager for your iPhone. As an app, mSecure adds much more functionality to the iPhone that is lacking in the security arena. The iPhone, in many ways, is a portable computer, and should be treated as such; in an age, where more consumers are using smart phones, many people should take steps to protect their data. Applications like mSecure provide us with the opportunity to secure our smart phones. The design, user-interface, functionality, and security all play an important role in mSecure’s performance.
Design
mSecure has a very simple design that fits the simplistic theme of most iPhone apps. For the design you have a choice of two themes dark grey or blue. The menu options: Search, Name, Type and Preferences, are easy to locate within the app, being advantageously placed on the bottom taskbar. The last option, New Item, can be found on the top right-hand corner of the app’s menu. The main window shows a list of all of the data and passwords stored within the app.
User-Interface
mSecure’s user-interface complements the app’s design by layering all of its menu options. On the bottom taskbar each option expands itself by pulling up a new window. The search option pulls up a keyboard so that you can search for data. The name and type options basically rearrange the way your data is listed either alphabetically or by category. The preference’s option pulls up completely new window giving a new list of options that lets you to configure the app. The new item option, labeled as a plus sign, pulls up a second area where new data and passwords can be added for storage. This option within itself is very important because it allows for many different types of information to be added, and lets you to customize and create your own categories as well.
Functionality and Security
As an app, mSecure accomplishes what it sets out to do, which is protecting your data. However, it also enhances and secures the iPhone’s functionality. The way data is listed, mSecure makes it easy to sort through, and view data and passwords. Data is listed alphabetically, and by category or type. This improves the app’s function tremendously and allows for quick access. The search function is also very intuitive, and searches for exactly what you typed via category, keyword, name, etc. Adding data to mSecure is also very simple. You can add almost any category you want from web login information, credit cards, email accounts, registration codes, etc. There is so much freedom with this application that you can basically give it multiple uses, which is why it scored very high on my list.
Another aspect of this app’s functionality is that it allows you to access your login information for websites by taking advantage of copy and paste. All you have to do is paste the username and password when you arrive at a certain website. If the information is stored in mSecure, than it knows exactly what data to use. In many ways, this feature is basically encrypted auto-fill. The one draw back to the auto-copy feature is that it pastes the username and password in one area, and can’t differentiate between which section it’s actually in. Nevertheless, the preferences menu is the backbone of mSecure’s security and functionality. If you want a lot of security than it depends on the way you configure your security preferences, and believe me, you have many options: password, auto-lock, self-destruct, edit types list, backup data, restore data, email backup, and auto-copy on URL launch. And once you select one of these menus then they in turn expand into a whole line of other options. So at best, you can customize how secure you want your data to be, which is by far the best feature of this application. A great example, is logging into mSecure itself; you can even set it to enter self-destruct mode after a certain number of failed login attempts. The security just to get into the program is impressive. As for its other key features, mSecure is an excellent backup program for email and data when used in conjunction with mSeven’s desktop backup program, called mBackup, which can store all of the information you have saved on your iPhone. In essence, mSecure makes your iPhone a whole lot easier to use and protects your data at the same time. Thus, adding to its convenience.
Conclusion
In conclusion, mSecure is a very solid application, and protects data extremely well. In my experience, it even made logging into websites much easier. Overall, I recommend mSecure to anyone who needs to store any kind of data at all, and feel secure knowing that it will be protected. Especially for the price, which is only $2.99 from mSeven Software LLC in the iTunes App Store. This application is worth it, and I give it a 4.5/5.0.
4.5/5.0
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Categories: TheMacFeed Reviews:, iPhone Apps
