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Have you ever heard of NEWater that originated in the city state of Singapore? It is actually reclaimed water which has been processed so that one is able to drink what was once unpalatable. Well, human waste is not called […]

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Almost every phone in existence uses a SIM card, especially GSM-based devices. It turns out, that while SIM cards are encrypted, they can easily be breached with just a couple of text messages, and it apparently takes only a couple of minutes. The hack allows someone to listen in on calls and steal mobile data from a phone.

The hack consists of cloaking a text message so that it looks like it was sent from the carrier, and about a quarter of the time, an error message is sent back containing information about the SIM card that can be used to break into it. After that, another text can be sent that officially finishes the job, allowing hackers into your phone.

Security researcher Karsten Nohl of Security Research Labs discovered the exploit and says that up to 750 million handsets could be vulnerable to the hack. However, he notes that only SIM cards using older data encryption methods are at risk, while SIM cards using the newer Triple DES encryption are safe.

Out of all the mobile phones littering the world, about half of them use SIM cards that still use the older DES encryption. However, the exploit probably won’t last for long, since Nohl reported the vulnerability to the GSM Association, and they plan to speak with all carriers about fixing the exploit.

Nohl also plans to reveal his findings during the upcoming Black Hat conference. Don’t worry too much, though, as Nohl believes cyber criminals haven’t figured out the hack, and it would most likely take around six months for someone to figure it out. By then, carriers are hoping to have already patched the vulnerability.

VIA: New York Times

SIM card hack possible with a couple of text messages is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2013, SlashGear. All right reserved.

In a Chinese press release we just received, phone maker Xiaomi has just announced that it generated a revenue of CN¥13.27 billion or about $2.16 billion in the first half of 2013. This easily exceeds the company’s CN¥12.6 billion or $2.05 billion revenue from the entirety of 2012, so things are already looking good ahead of the annual event on August 16th, when multiple products are expected to be launched — including a TV that got leaked last month.

CEO Lei Jun said that this is partly thanks to the 7.03 million Xiaomi Phones his company sold within the same period, and the release also praised the popularity of the Xiaomi Box plus various other accessories, such as the new in-ear headphones launched recently. In addition to that, Xiaomi now has 20 million users from around the world as of end of June, 14.22 million of which come from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. The latter two became part of Xiaomi’s larger scope in April this year, with Hong Kong using the classic online retail model, and Taiwan doing the same but also selling devices through a partnership with local carrier Far Eastone.

Despite the surprising good announcements, Lei reminds his team at today’s celebration party to “forget about the results, they’re not the most important,” and that “only making products that make users scream can bring in long-term value.” The real challenge now is to tap into the more exotic markets, and Xiaomi has previously expressed great interest in Europe. Good luck with that, Lei!

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

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If you love stuff that looks like it came from another celestial body, then you’ll be over the moon with the Luna iPhone skin. If they look particularly moony to you, then its designers were able to have it manufactured well then, because that’s what inspired its creation. The moon, I mean.

This unusual iPhone skin was designed by Korean-based studio Posh Craft and Realize. Few materials can replicate the look and feel of the moon. One of these is concrete – and that’s exactly what they used for the Luna case.

The thin, but flexible concrete shell is pockmarked with miniature craters all over to mimic the moon’s surface, making each skin completely unique.

Industrial designers Jihye Kim and Changho Lee were the leaders of the design team that created the Luna. There’s no word yet on when you’ll be able to buy one for your iPhone.

[via Knstrct and Cool Material]

We hate to say this, but the KIRF market is often a good indicator of how popular certain devices are, hence the plentiful fake iPhones and Galaxy phones in China. (Meanwhile, MediaTek is shamelessly cashing in as it ships its SoCs to those cloning factories.) Now, we’re not saying the HTC One doesn’t have any clones, but most of those we’ve seen weren’t very convincing — they were either of different sizes or had very poor build quality. But we eventually stumbled upon a pretty good fake in Huaqiangbei.

The offending device is pictured above on the left. Externally, it bears a disgustingly strong resemblance to the real deal thanks to the same 4.7-inch screen size, the same curved back, the same micro-SIM tray, the same dual-soft-key layout and even the same metallic chamfer on the front. But if you look closer or touch it even, the tell-tale signs start to show up. See for yourself in the gallery below — the fake One is to the left or on top of the real thing.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, HTC

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