"SMS" <scharf.steven@geemail.com> wrote in message
news:47be0f7e$0$36330$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net...
> Uh oh. Don't be doing any telephone banking or credit card ordering on
> your GSM phone.


Why not? We used to do it on unencrypted analog cordless and cellphones all
the time. We simply relied on the law of averages- while it was POSSIBLE
our calls were being monitored, it was extremely UNLIKELY they were.

> "A pair of researchers has created a low-cost and simple hack to crack the
> encryption in GSM mobile phones and intercept voice conversations and SMS
> text messages -- within minutes."
>
> http://www.darkreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=146616

Low cost and simple? A thousand bucks for a dedicated piece of hardware?

"Low cost and simple" was cutting a diode on your RadioShack police scanner
to re-enable the locked-out 800-MHz analog cellular band. This is neither
low cost nor simple.

And BTW, why cross-post to five different carriers' NGs when we have a
perfectly good "generic" NG- alt.cellular- for topics applicable to all
cellphone users?