Samsung's KNOX security solution, recently approved by the US Department of Defense, already provides a secure way of using the company's devices by both enterprises and consumers. However, in Germany the security requirements seem to be even more severe, which has resulted in the launch of a high-security version of the Galaxy S III, using the SiMKo security technology.
Basically, SiMKo contains something called the L4 microkernel, which has only around 10,000 lines of code and provides a limited and secure environment for running a few apps, similar to KNOX. When that secure environment isn't needed, users can simply switch to the standard Android OS, with data between the two environments separated as necessary.
The SiMKo variant is only available for businesses and government agencies, and costs €1700 on a two-year contract, an amount that would turn away normal consumers even if they were able to get one.
