Security News > 2020 > January > SIM Hijacking

SIM hijacking - or SIM swapping - is an attack where a fraudster contacts your cell phone provider and convinces them to switch your account to a phone that they control.

Sometimes this involves people inside the phone companies.

We examined the authentication procedures used by five pre-paid wireless carriers when a customer attempted to change their SIM card.

These procedures are an important line of defense against attackers who seek to hijack victims' phone numbers by posing as the victim and calling the carrier to request that service be transferred to a SIM card the attacker possesses.

The phone companies want to provide easy customer service for their legitimate customers, and that system is what's being exploited by the SIM hijackers.

News URL

https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2020/01/sim_hijacking.html