Hacks & Case Studies: Cellular Communications

Hacking is fun and so are learning and playing with new things, as such the choice of utilizing my small GSM network for research was trivial. Having seen various approaches for cellular communications in previous projects, I decided to start collecting connected devices “just to have a closer look”.

As the title already announces, the talk will cover various devices and shed light on how they communicate with the rest of the world. It will show how each one can be remotely controlled and which reporting channels are in use. Where necessary simple hacks will show how most identified security measures can be circumvented and what this can mean for the operator/user of the device. The talk will contain special appearances by a GPS Tracker, a simple Home Alarm System and two different small scale control systems. Above this a few more case studies like a simple SmartMeter for electrics metering and a remote maintenance box for small solar systems will be covered.

Every single case study helps creating a bigger picture of cellular communications - how they work, how they’re secured and how they can be broken. Aiming at Making the World a Safer Place, the talk will also cover a few potential fixes for the identified issues.