The pace of change in mobile spying applications is rapid. However, when it comes to intercepting phone calls in the field, phones that use the older 2G mobile communications standard are easier to crack. Often, organizations that want to carry out an attack will force a mobile device from 3G into 2G only mode. Researchers have already demonstrated, publicly, that the A5/1 algorithm that protects 2G communications can be broken and communications decrypted in real time. Of course, depending on your destination, 3G wireless may not be an option to begin with. However, if you’re in a country with ubiquitous 3G and notice that, suddenly, you’re in 2G mode -that should be a red flag, Moorehouse said.
Mind that signal
The pace of change in mobile spying applications is rapid. However, when it comes to intercepting phone calls in the field, phones that use the older 2G mobile communications standard are easier to crack. Often, organizations that want to carry out an attack will force a mobile device from 3G into 2G only mode. Researchers have already demonstrated, publicly, that the A5/1 algorithm that protects 2G communications can be broken and communications decrypted in real time. Of course, depending on your destination, 3G wireless may not be an option to begin with.
