Andy apologizes for Essential Phone's customer data leak

Andy Rubin, the CEO of Essential Phone, has apologized after an email was sent to people who pre-ordered the phone seeking their driving license information.

The co-creator of Android has confirmed that around 70 customers were affected by the sloppy confirmation process and that Essential will offer one year of "LifeLock" protection to impacted customers to prevent potential identify theft.

"Being a founder in an intensely competitive business means you occasionally have to eat crow. It's humiliating, it does not taste good, and often, it's a humbling experience. As Essential's founder and CEO, I'm personally responsible for this error and will try my best to not repeat it," Rubin wrote in a blog post.

The customers who were asked to provide their drivers' license information replied to the email with their personal information but it was sent to all those who had received the email asking for the information.

The Essential Phone was introduced in May and the company had promised a June release.

However, the shipping was delayed and the company said the phone was finally available for purchase from its own website and retail partners.

The phone features an edge-to-edge display and a modular system that lets users attach accessories such as a 360-degree camera.

Essential Phone sports a 5.7-inch LTPS display with 19:10 aspect ratio instead of the regular 16:9.

It features dual primary cameras with two 13MP sensors. One is a standard RGB sensor while the other is monochrome.

The phone is made of titanium and it has a ceramic back that gives it added protection if dropped.

The device is powered by a 2.45 GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset clubbed with Adreno 540 GPU.

It features 4GB RAM and 128GB internal memory which is non-expandable.

Along with the phone, Essential is also developing a smart home hub.

Amazon, which has a leading position in smart speakers with its Echo, invested in Essential via its Alexa Fund.

--IANS

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