Smartphones’ security is breached, and this is the shocking truth users worldwide are facing. Last August 16, Australia’s 60 Minutes featured the flaw in smartphones’ security and how both commercialized and criminal hackers can spy on every mobile user worldwide.
Ross Coulthart followed this story as he reviews how hackers can intercept every phone call and text message. To do this, he first travelled to Berlin to meet a group of hackers, led by Luca Melette from SR Labs. It was the first television appearance by the hackers to reveal the security breach.
In the report, Coulthart and the hackers demonstrated how smartphones can be hacked. To do this, he called Independent Australian Senator Nick Xenophon at Australia’s Parliament House while Coulthart was in Germany.
During the call, Coulthart revealed the reason why he was calling the senator and asked if he would be willing to help demonstrate how smartphones are hacked by having the senator’s phone hacked. Xenophon agreed, although he himself didn’t believe it was possible. Much to the surprise of the senator, a video was shown to him where hackers were able to successfully intercept both phone calls and text messages he sent to Coulthart who was then communicating with him while in Germany.
After revealing the breach, the senator commented that this is not just about espionage, but rather an issue for every Australian using smartphones. Coulthart also noted that this is a worldwide issue as the show also revealed how hackers are able to do this with the help of SS7.
SS7, Signalling System 7, is an international telecommunications standard that helps networks exchange information. In other words, this system helps each telephone company to connect calls and text messages from anywhere around the world. Unfortunately, while this architecture is to help people communicate more effectively from all across the world, it is also used by hackers to spy on people and potentially steal any information forwarded to their smartphones.
With the revelation of the SS7’s flaw, it also puts people to question whether bank code verifications are safe. Unfortunately, it’s not especially from hackers who can steal the information before you can even check your messages.
The team that helped Coulthart reveal this flaw in the SS7 are a team who have authorized access. Melette and his team are presently in Berlin to help the government tighten its network’s security.
Other than Germany, other countries are getting its carriers to tighten its network’s security. Australia is one of these countries that are moving quickly to protect its people, especially smartphone users from any hacks.
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