Why the SS7 protocol is critical to mobile network security
In recent weeks, following an episode of 60 Minutes, you may have heard of the SS7 protocol or SS7 network. For anyone unfamiliar with the technology – and you’re in the majority – the SS7 protocol underpins the world’s mobile networks. It possesses more daily users than the internet and must be used in every instance to send a text or make a phone call, among other uses.
The protocol was established when the first mobile operators were born, and has been used ever since. The original design assumptions were that access to the SS7 network would be strictly limited to the small group of mobile operators who used it to communicate with and bill each other. The challenge now is that we live in a world with a global mobile network, with operators in every geography, and many more access points to the SS7 network than ever before.
Skilled hackers with expert knowledge can infiltrate the SS7 network to do things such as intercept messages and calls, track a mobile subscriber’s location or alter phone credit amounts – without detection.
