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Are You Exposed to Phone Hacking?(AllAfrica Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) The world is awash with the news of one of the world's most popular tabloids in Britain shutting down in the wake of a privacy violation scandal. The British newspaper News of the World, normally trading in sensational headlines and celebrity gossip, has come under fire over allegations that employees illegally recorded personal calls of not only movie stars and politicians but also ordinary citizens. But if this can happen in the more technologically sophisticated Britain, how about a developing country like ours? Is your phone prone to hacking? Look at it this way. Your everyday smart phone basically runs the same operating system as your desktop and laptop computer and is just as susceptible to viruses without additional anti-virus guards. People carry phones around all the time, making it easier for attackers to listen in on conversions, track locations or even collect personal information. Features such as Bluetooth and text messaging make it easier to send rootkits to phones. A rootkit is a software that enables access to a phone while it is hiding its presence from the owner of the phone. If your phone's bluetooth is enabled and set to discoverable with no protection, a hacker sitting in the same coffee shop can secretly load spyware software on your phone. When you get back to the office and synchronise your phone with your computer, this software moves from your phone to your company network. From then on, your company is exposed. There are other ways of getting into phones -- running from quite simple stuff through to much more technical methods. One of the main hacking tools is a software called FlexiSpy. This software sits on your handset without you really knowing it's there. It transfers recordings of messages and voicemails to a separate website where someone can pick them up. This software can be downloaded to the phone via WiFi or Bluetooth -- but you have to have physical access to the phone that is being targeted to agree to download it. But it is very discreet, you would not know its presence once it is downloaded. The other method is cloning of handsets. Cloning occurs when hackers scan the airwaves to obtain SIM card information and mobile identification numbers, and then using that data on other phones. The bad guy simply uses an interceptor, hardware, and software to make a phone exactly like yours. Using this method, a person manages to have a cell phone that "spoofs" another phone, and the mobile service provider assumes that the fake phone is really the real phone. The owner of the real phone gets charged for calls made by the fake phone. The extent of our vulnerability varies depending on your phone and the safeguards put in place by your mobile service provider. Current Kenya's mobile service providers have not had widely known cases to public on phone hacking. However, many websites, including the Kenya Police, one have been hacked in the past. Since phone hacking can seriously damage the credibility of a telecom company, mobile service providers consistently upgrade their systems to avert weaknesses that could predispose them to cloning. According to the Kenya Communications Act, it is an offence to hack onto mobile phones or websites but it is not an easy task tracking done the hackers. The best way to mitigate the damage is to watch your phone expenditure closely. The moment you see a rise in calling charges and you have reasons to believe you didn't incur the charges, contact your service provider to investigate possibility of hacking. If your cellphone has been hacked, dangerous things can potentially happen. Your personal information becomes vulnerable, and puts you at risk for identity theft, stolen passwords and numerous other undesirable situations. The writer is a monitoring and evaluation specialist. Copyright The Nation. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). |