UK networking and security firm AL Digital has revealed that some Nokia and Ericsson Bluetooth handsets are open to being hacked or "snarfed". However, this is not expected to cause much of a problem in SA at this stage.
Adam Laurie, AL Digital chief security officer, says he modified the Bluetooth stack on his standard Bluetooth-enabled laptop and was able to hack into a Bluetooth-enabled phone. The concept has been named "bluesnarfing".
Laurie says once the phone was hacked, he was able to access the phonebook, calendar, clock, business card, properties, change log and the international mobile equipment identity, which uniquely identifies the phone to the mobile network.
According to AL Digital`s Web site on Bluetooth vulnerabilities, bluesnarfing is normally only possible if the device is in "discoverable" or "visible" mode, but it says there are tools available on the Internet that allow this safety net to be bypassed.
The site claims the Nokia 6310, 6310i, 7650, 8910 and 8910i are vulnerable to attack in visible Bluetooth mode, while Ericsson`s T68, T68i, R520m, T610, Z1010 and Z600 are listed as being vulnerable to a snarf attack. Some of these phones cannot be hacked when in invisible mode, it says.
The site also claims that the Nokia 6310i and the 7650 are vulnerable to a backdoor attack, where a previously trusted paired user who has been removed from the trusted list is still able to access the phone.
"Although I removed myself from the trusted list, I found I still had the internal `keys` for the connection stored at my end, and so I was able to connect even though the target device thought it had removed me from it`s `trusted` list," Laurie says.
Through the backdoor, a user can retrieve data from the other phone and access other services, including modems or Internet, WAP and GPRS gateways without the owner`s knowledge or consent, Laurie says.
Admissions and fixes
According to reports on ZDNet, Nokia and Ericsson have admitted to flaws in certain of their modules.
ZDNet quotes Ericsson as saying the problem has been fixed in new phones being sold, and those users with T610, T610i, T39, R520 and T68 models should upgrade their software if they have software version R1A081.
Nokia is quoted as saying it will not release a fix for the devices in the near future, as it believes the attacks are limited to "only a few models" and it does not expect them to "happen at large".
Gary Cousins, Clickatell key sales consultant, says there is relatively little Bluetooth awareness or use in SA, so the vulnerability is not expected to cause problems locally.
The RF Group, Nokia`s official distributor in SA, says it still awaiting confirmation on the possibility of bluesnarfing from its head office.
ITWeb was not able to make contact with Sony Ericsson before publication.
Share
