You can defend against aLTEr attacks – Vodacom
At the end of June 2018, researchers disclosed vulnerabilities in the LTE standard.
LTE is the standard used as the basis for 4G networks around the world, which means South African networks are also affected.
Vulnerabilities discovered by the researchers included an active attack they called aLTEr, and two passive attacks which use identity mapping and website fingerprinting.
The aLTEr exploit lets an attacker redirect connections and intercept traffic from a device on the network. This may include usernames and passwords, or other sensitive data being transmitted from your phone over a cellular network.
While the researchers did note that the attacks require significant effort, they believe they can be executed on real LTE networks.
“The most likely victims of such targeted attacks in practice are persons of special interest, such as politicians, journalists,” they said.
Attacks
Ars Technica reported that the attacks described by the researchers required equipment worth around $4,000, including an LTE relay that the target must be in range of.
According to the report, the vulnerabilities are within the LTE specification – and therefore can’t be patched.
However, Vodacom told MyBroadband there are ways to protect against the types of attacks the researchers revealed.
“Mobile operators, including Vodacom, have fraud detection functions that can detect and react to certain attack scenarios,” said Vodacom.
“The Global Special Mobile Alliance (GSMA) is now working with the industry to investigate how to include the protection of the integrity of traffic and information – user plane integrity – in LTE.”
Vodacom added that the GSMA does not think that the kind of attacks described in the research have taken place, or that one is likely.
“As always, we would urge all customers to remain vigilant when online and to ensure that they do not compromise sensitive information such as passwords to potential cyber criminals,” said Vodacom.
Cell C, MTN, and Telkom did not comment on the matter by the time of publication.
According to the researchers, the only way to truly defend against an aLTEr attack is to exclusively visit websites that use HTTP Strict Transport Security and DNS Security Extensions.
Local company DrayTek has stated that having DNSSEC enabled on routers can also prevent users falling victim to the attack.
Now read: Why the websites you visit are showing as “not secure”
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