If I had to ask you if you would be willing to buy a smartphone case for around €170, what you would say? Your answer will probably be in the negative. But what if I had to add that the case would make your phone impossible to hack? That might change your answer.

US-based tech outfit Vysk has designed the QS1 to be the ultimate in mobile phone security. In fact, the head of Vysk has publicly claimed it’s unhackable and says he has already provided models to heads of state and security agencies to use.

One of the biggest threats to mobile phone security is malware, in the form of either low-key code to steal passwords, images or login details or higher level stuff used in espionage.

We have also heard of security agencies hacking phones and using microphones to listen to conversations or take pictures of people around the user. The QS1 smartphone case will put an end to all that.

The QS1 smartphone case takes security outside the phone and has all the hardware it needs built into the case itself. So it doesn’t matter what happens to the phone as the case does all the work.

The case has two privacy modes: lockdown mode and private call mode. The first mode is free but the second requires a monthly subscription. Lockdown mode blocks your phone camera and microphone so it cannot record anything without you knowing. Private call mode allows you to make encrypted VoIP calls to other Vysk users. In this mode, your phone doesn’t record any call metadata.

There are also three apps that come with the QS1 smartphone case: Vysk Private Messaging or secure IM, Vysk Text Lite that allows non Vysk users to text, and Vysk Gallery for secure storage of images.

The QS1 will be launched this winter.

Jesmond Darmanin is a technology enthusiast who has his own blog at www.itnewsblog.com.