Research In Motion announced this week that latest BlackBerry 7 devices have been granted Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 140-2 certification by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Communications Security Establishment Canada (CSEC).

The 140-2 certification is recognized by the U.S. and Canadian governments and is required under the Federal Information Security Management Act of 2002 for devices to be used by government employees.

RIM has long produced extremely secure smartphones, which is why it has been the platform of choice financial and government workers for a decade. RIM’s PlayBook also achieved government clearance last summer making it the first tablet to get a security clearance.

Details of RIM’s press release can be found here.

Details of the security features of the BlackBerry smartphone can be found here.

Back in October, we announced that Research In Motion were Beta testing an online service that would allow companies that employ Microsoft Office 365, to extend their Microsoft Exchange Online capabilities to BlackBerry Smartphones.

After months of testing, this week RIM have launched it for prime use. The service, which comes at no additional cost, allows for remote management of devices, such as resetting passwords and locking down handsets, as well as synchronization of Exchange email, contacts and calendars. continue

RIM will begin a campaign with US carriers this week to entice consumers to try its latest BlackBerry 7 devices.

H­eins said in an interview with Bloomberg “The promotions won’t be about just simply money, they will also involve mobile apps”. “We have to do something dramatically different in the US to get our market share back”.

The company missed the shift in the US to more consumer-oriented features like web browsing and apps. It’s now focused on BB10, which the CEO said has already attracted licensing interest. The company has held discussions with interested handset makers and personal-computer makers, he said, declining to name them.

The board of directors of Research in Motion, the makers of BlackBerry, announced yesterday that on the recommendations of Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie, Thorsten Heins will take over as head of the company. Mr. Heins was also appointed to RIM’s Board.

Mike Lazaridis will become Vice Chair of RIM’s Board and Chair of the Board’s new Innovation Committee, while Jim Balsillie will still remain a member of the board. continue

Safe mode is designed to allow troubleshooting or remove any unwanted applications and can also be used to prevent third-party applications from running automatically when starting the BlackBerry® smartphone. continue

“BlackBerry PlayBook is already recognized for delivering powerful performance, true multi-tasking, advanced web browsing and HD multimedia in an ultra-portable design,” said Mike Lazaridis, President and Co-CEO at Research In Motion. “With BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.0 we are building on this strong foundation, as well as leveraging our strengths in communications, social integration and productivity, to allow people to use their BlackBerry PlayBook in new ways throughout the day.” continue

BlackBerry 7.1 will begin rolling out from carriers around the world beginning today and over the coming weeks. The new releases of BBM, BlackBerry Traffic and BlackBerry Travel will be available on BlackBerry® App World™ beginning today.

“BlackBerry 7 delivered a next-generation platform for our customers around the world and the range of software updates announced today build upon the strengths of that platform to further enhance the mobile experience and make life easier, from managing daily tasks to planning big adventures,” said Mike Lazaridis, President and Co-CEO at Research In Motion. continue