With hackers getting ready to wreck the mobile platform, it is time to look into security issues more closely
With hackers getting ready to wreck the mobile platform, it is time to look into security issues more closelyNOW that the brouhaha over 3G auctions is over, it is time to look into another aspect. Security in the telecom sector has always been the cause of major headache for security agencies.u00a0 Finally this week, Canada-based company Research in Motion (RIM) has assured the Indian government that it will address all security concerns related to BlackBerry mobile phones. But government agencies still are ignorant about security threats to the ambitious 3G project.
With 3G coming into play, the mobile will play the role of a computer. Hackers will be able to peek into mobile phones the same way they toyed with the confidential data on your computer. A hacker can easily listen in to your phone call, check your messages, gallery and can easily control all the data on your mobile phone.
The recently announced 3G launch and the distribution of the 3G spectrums is great news to all the tech- savvy people in the country but at the similar time, cyber criminals are getting ready to attack the mobile platform as they have been doing to computers for long.
This third-generation technology brings along with it a vast number of vulnerabilities, making it a haven for hackers and crackers. All this while, very few consumers were actually aware about the threats to 3G, but now when it is becoming a reality in India.
With the advent of the 3G technology in India, rises the risk of mobile security threats. As the risk increases, so does the responsibility of the mobile operators and 3G service providers to secure and monitor the network across the country.
According to Rajat Khare, Joint Managing Director and co-founder, Appin Security Group, depending on the size and reach, each operator will need to spend 5-10 per cent of its Capex on securing its 3G network. Similarly networking and Internet will throw up many challenges. Large amount of data on a good bandwidth is going to be on a boom. 3G service causes more security threat as a mobile phone is something that is always on. Thus security solutions could be at different levelsu00a0-- at the service provider's end, the handset manufacturer's end and it could come as a value-added service (VAS).
The 3G networks will make mobile communication network and bandwidth equivalent to a computer network, which will in turn open the chances for cyber criminals to carry out attacks at will through the mobile networks. This will also be a threat to national security as the calls made by VoIP through 3G might not be traceable and can act as a free communication platform for the negative elements of the society, Khare explains.
Security will be top priority for government and corporates, though at the individual level as well, the consumers should start spending on securing the data on their mobile. Data can be vulnerable to theft and misuse in case a mobile phone is misplaced or lost. Another major threat will be an attack called 'overbilling'. This involves hijacking the IP of the subscriber and using it for the attacker's own purpose. Eventually, this leads to the legitimate user being billed for activities which they did not undertake.
Reasons for Vulnerability
1.u00a0High Speed wireless IP-based networks which allow users to do much more while remaining connected to the Internet.
2. Open ISP networks are vulnerable to more attacks from the external realm
3. Evolution of IMS (IP Multimedia System) which will enable interconnected networks all running simultaneously on IP.
