Recently, there were news articles appearing in the Montreal Gazette and WIRED Magazine that reported on the Rogers and Fido 2G GSM wireless networks as being vulnerable to hackers.
The articles detailed that a call over a GSM network, or more specifically the Rogers/Fido network, could be easily intercepted within 20 seconds and later decrypted and analyzed using low technology.
It is worth noting that the wireless network being hacked is the 2G wireless network which is used by Rogers and Fido in Canada for voice calls. 3G, or the Internet on your mobile device on the other hand, used by the majority of Canadian wireless carriers, is more secure.
However both of these standards are different than the HSPA+ networks used by Bell, Telus, and Vidéotron, which at this time, the vulnerability of those networks is unknown.
These articles were posted in the last week of December with no immediate reply or statement from Rogers/Fido. This week, a few days after the articles went live, Rogers/Fido have released an official statement regarding the reports. The statement is essentially what Rogers/Fido representatives should be telling their customers.
Check it out:
Response to concerned customers:
- Customer security and privacy is a priority.
- We use the latest encryption technologies as licensed through the GSM Association and network vendors.
- We adhere to GSM Association standards and support the most up to date encryption available.
- There is no practical risk for customers on the network.
Media Inquires:
Do not respond to any media inquiries. Instead, please direct requests to: Odette Coleman, Regional Communications Director at 416-935-6441 or Odette.Coleman@rci.rogers.com.
What do you think? Are you worried about your GSM calls being intercepted?
