Beware of missed call to check SIM cloning

Next time if you get a missed call starting with +92; #90 or #09, don't show the courtesy of calling back because chances are it would lead to your SIM card being cloned. The telecom service providers are now issuing alerts to subscribers -particularly about the series mentioned above as the moment one press the call button after dialing the above number, someone at the other end will get your phone and SIM card cloned.

According to reports, more than one lakh subscribers have fallen prey to this new telecom terror attack as the frequency of such calls continues to grow. Intelligence agencies have reportedly confirmed to the service providers particularly in UP West telecom division that such a racket is not only under way but the menace is growing fast. "We are sure there must be some more similar combinations that the miscreants are using to clone the handsets and all the information stored in them," an intelligence officer told TOI.

General Manager (GM) BSNL, RV Verma, said the department had already issued alerts to all the broadband subscribers and now alert SMSes were being issued to other subscribers as well.

As per Rakshit Tandon, an IT expert who also teaches at the police academy (UP), the crooks can use other combination of numbers as well while making a call. "It is better not to respond to calls received from unusual calling numbers," says Tandon. "At the same time one should avoid storing specifics of their bank account, ATM/ Credit/Debit card numbers and passwords in their phone memory because if one falls a prey to such crooks then the moment your cell phone or sim are cloned, the data will be available to the crooks who can withdraw amount from your bank accounts as well," warns Punit Misra; an IT expert who also owns a consultancy in Lucknow.


Beware of missed call to check SIM cloning - The Economic Times

http://zeenews.india.com/business/news/technology/beware-of-missed-calls-that-can-clone-your-sim_54909.html

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/enterprise-it/security/Beware-of-missed-call-to-check-SIM-cloning/articleshow/14574073.cms

Hello BSNL Office..I want a land line connection immediately. :Boy Phone:

Rubbish !there is no way to clone a sim via phone call lol

and WEP is safe enough for your routers.

Rubbish !

there is no way to clone a sim via phone call lol

Seriously? I was bit worried about my parent. They are very very simple, they might fall in such trap.

I have received many missed calls from +92 numbers. but from past 2-3 months there hasnt been any single call. I do not know if they were having any connection 😛

Seriously? I was bit worried about my parent. They are very very simple, they might fall in such trap.
cell > carrier > voice data > carrier > cell

how can u clone a sim, if only voice is going to reach, unless this cloning is done within your carrier network

But what about the buttons we press during call to CCpress 1 for Falanapress 2 for Dhikanapress 9 to talk to executive??These are command we send during the call right? likewise what if they tell to press certain buttons? 🤔

Didn't got any such Missed calls Earlier, But the day i switched to Gnex getting Regular Missed calls from +92Didn't understood the connection between switching the Handset with same no and getting such Missed Calls

Phone cloning involves placing a computer chip into the target mobile telephone, allowing the electronic serial number (ESN) of the mobile phone to be modified. The ESN is normally transmitted to the cellular company in order to ascertain whether the mobile phone user is the legitimate owner of that phone. Modifying this, as well as the phone number itself (known as the mobile identification number, or MIN) paves the way for fraudulent calls, as the target telephone is now a clone of the telephone from which the original ESN and MIN numbers were obtained.
Cloning has been shown to be successful on code division multiple access (CDMA) but rare on the Global System for Mobile communication (GSM), one of the more widely used mobile telephone communication systems. However, cloning GSM phones is achieved by cloning the SIM card contained within, not necessarily any of the phone's internal data (GSM phones do not have ESN or MIN, only an IMEI number.) There are various methods used to obtain the ESN and MIN; the most common are to crack the cellular company, or eavesdrop on the cellular network. GSM SIM cards are actually copied by removing the SIM card and placing a device between the handset and the SIM card and allowing it to operate for a few days and extracting the KI, or secret code. This is normally done with handsets that have the option of an "extended battery" by placing the normal size battery in the handset and the Kopy Kat in the now vacant extra space. This is done by allowing the device to log the interaction between the mobile telephone switching office and the handset.
Effectiveness and legislation

Phone cloning is outlawed in the United Kingdom by the Wireless Telephone Protection Act of 1998, which prohibits:
knowingly using, producing, trafficking in, having control or custody of, or possessing hardware or software knowing that it has been configured to insert or modify telecommunication identifying information associated with or contained in a telecommunications instrument so that such instrument may be used to obtain telecommunications service without authorization.
The effectiveness of phone cloning is limited. Every mobile phone contains a radio fingerprint in its transmission signal which remains unique to that mobile despite changes to the phone's ESN or MIN. Thus, cellular companies are often able to catch cloned phones when there are discrepancies between the fingerprint and the ESN or MIN.

Phone cloning - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

That means its near impossible to clone the SIM using stupid phone calls!..phewww... relief ed!

I guess all mobile providers should block calls coming from +92 numbers, after all we all know its from our friendly neighbor 🙂If people want to receive calls from +92, then they should request to operator for this facility.