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Simple Text Messages Can Be Used to Steal Data

by Terrence O'Brien on April 20, 2009 at 04:03 PM


Some phones today can have pretty dramatic security functions; case in point, the iPhone will erase itself if you screw up entering your password 10 times in a row. Unfortunately, all a hacker really needs to bypass your password and take over your phone is a simple text message.

In a series of proof-of-concept videos posted on YouTube, Dan Dearing (Vice President of marketing at Trust Digital) demonstrates how, using a text message, he can hijack a phone and steal data off of it. Using an SMS text message, Dearing can force a smart phone to launch Mobile Internet Explorer, download and install a malicious software package, and send data back to his own phone. This attack is referred to as a "midnight raid attack," since it would ideally be done while the victim is sleeping so they don't notice the cellular activity.


In another video, Dearing shows how an attacker can steal data from a smart phone attached to Wi-Fi hotspot by using a text message to turn off encryption. This attack is most effective at unsecured hotspots, like the one at your local Starbucks (or the router in your apartment building that you've been "borrowing" Internet from for the past six months). Unlike the "midnight raid attack," this hack is invisible to the victim.

While it's not quite time to start panicking, it's important to realize that no device (even your trusted BlackBerry) is invulnerable to attack. [From: CNET]

Tags: hack, hacker, hacking, security, smart phone, SmartPhone, sms, text messaging, texting, TextMessaging, top

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