"Fake" Cell Towers (Was Is this even possible?)

[Ascertion]

"Fake" Cell Towers (Was Is this even possible?)

 

 

http://www.welivesecurity.com/2014/08/28/android-security-2/

Sent from my SM-G900P

[belusnecropolis]

Very.

[jp1992]

Law enforcement has been using Stingrays for a few years now that do similar stuff.  So it is very possible

[bigsnake49]

Law enforcement has been using Stingrays for a few years now that do similar stuff.  So it is very possible

The FCC is looking into it and something tells me that they are mad as hell!

[kckid]

Seventeen fake cellphone towers were discovered across the U.S. last week, according to a report in Popular Science.

 

 

http://www.businessinsider.com/mysterious-fake-cellphone-towers-intercept-calls-2014-9

[mhammett]

http://www.popsci.com/article/technology/mysterious-phony-cell-towers-could-be-intercepting-your-calls

 

 

Other than at the South Point Casino, does anyone know where these towers are located more specifically than the map they provide?

 

I saw references to GSM. Is it only for GSM networks where this is an issue?

[Rawvega]

http://www.popsci.com/article/technology/mysterious-phony-cell-towers-could-be-intercepting-your-calls

 

 

Other than at the South Point Casino, does anyone know where these towers are located more specifically than the map they provide?

 

I saw references to GSM. Is it only for GSM networks where this is an issue?

I was wondering the same thing. I do seem to recall reading articles some time back detailing how GSM was far more vulnerable than CDMA.

 

Sent from my SM-N900P using Tapatalk

[The_Chemist]

A fellow chemist here at work who is also responsible for our IT just came over to me and showed me an MSN article on this same thing.  It was quoted from Popular Science.  Scarey stuff! 

 

http://money.msn.com/investing/post--mysterious-fake-cellphone-towers-found-across-us

[bcltoys]

NSA

[dnicekid]

Here is another link.. Its on my local news now.

However it does say they aren't the size of cellphone towers..

 

http://wwlp.com/2014/09/05/fake-cell-phone-towers-could-be-stealing-your-information/

[dnwk]

What kind of encryption does CDMA use?

[jonathanm1978]

Maybe we should invite Kevin Mitnick to join the site and see what he can tell us about these..

[gr8nuguy]

i think i remember reading something about this last year also

[kg4icg]

The fake towers are gsm. Kind of hard replicating the handshaking going on in cdma between phone and the system. Which is why no one can bring a Sprint phone on Verizon and vice/versa. Not without doing some major work in the phones.

[dbsynergy]

There were talks about doing exactly this at Defcon a few years ago. They described all the details on how it can be done, why someone would do it, and offered recommendations to the GSM carriers on how to mitigate it. Essentially it's "stop using GSM and move to LTE ASAP"

[Nrbelex]

Here are a bunch more articles:

• Wired - Phone Firewall Identifies Rogue Cell Towers Trying to Intercept Your Calls
• Washington Post - Tech firm tries to pull back curtain on surveillance efforts in Washington
• Ars Technica - FCC to examine “unauthorized” cell snooping devices
• And today, CNBC - If you're on a phone in DC, someone could be listening

Some of this is just PR for the company selling a so-called "cryptophone," but I'm sure some of the issues being raised are also real. My understanding is that IMSI Catchers are GSM specific, so they might not target Sprint, but with Verizon being the biggest network in the country, I'm sure there's a CDMA equivalent.

 

Given that many of you guys are real experts in this area, my questions are:

• Do the techniques described pass the smell test of technical feasibility?
• Have you ever noticed anything which leads you to believe similar techniques are being used on the Sprint network?
• Is this something you're worried about?
• Anything you can do to avoid or deter being caught up in this kind of tracking/surveillance?

[Nrbelex]

 

And today, CNBC - If you're on a phone in DC, someone could be listening

 

That last article even has a nifty map of supposed cell phone interceptors:

[mc_gusto]

Law enforcement has been using Stingrays for a few years now that do similar stuff. So it is very possible

Here's an article in the bay area about law enforcement using stingrays

 

http://m.ktvu.com/news/news/local/2-investigates-cell-phone-surveillance/nhRSR/

[dedub]

http://www.pocketables.com/2015/01/snoopsnitch-for-root-finds-spy-cell-networks.html

 

haven't tried it (haven't bothered to re-root on lollipop).