Major SIM card security flaw puts hundreds of millions of devices at risk

[Wireless News]

A security researcher in Germany claims to have discovered an encryption flaw in SIM cards that allow a user’s cell phone to be hacked in mere minutes, The New York Times reported. Mobile security expert Karsten Nohl noted that an encryption hole allows unauthorized users to obtain a SIM card’s digital key by sending a text message to a device that is disguised as a carrier message. With access to the digital key, Nohl is able to send a virus to a cell phone’s SIM card with a second text message. He added that the virus allows him to listen to phone calls, make mobile purchases and even “impersonate the cell phone’s owner.” Nohl claims the entire process takes less

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