Is the Carrier IQ Rootkit Tracking Everything on Your Smartphone?
By Dennis Kuba
December 1, 2011
December 1, 2011
- As an Android, Blackberry or Nokia user, you may not know that an app called Carrier IQ is logging literally everything you are doing on your smartphone including keystrokes, SMS messages and HTTPS sessions. Other articles on Carrier IQ report that this information is being sent to the carriers.
- Apparently, there is no way for a user to turn Carrier IQ off without replacing the operating system.
- A former Justice Department prosecutor has told Forbes that this is “likely grounds for a class action lawsuit” as it violates federal wiretapping law. This story is beginning to get a significant amount of attention online.
- To see Carrier IQ in action, watch the 17-minute video posted to the PC World article.
Topics: Android, BlackBerry, Carrier IQ, Carrier IQ Rootkit, Justice Department, Mobile, Nokia, Phone, Privacy, Rootkit, Smartphone
8 Comments
From Carrier IQ:
“Carrier IQ’s Mobile Service Intelligence solution eliminates guesswork by automatically providing accurate, real-time data direct from the source – your customers’ handsets. Our powerful platform aggregates, analyzes and delivers that data via easy-to-use web applications that help wireless carriers make smart business decisions. The kind that can dramatically accelerate time to market, reduce operating costs and increase customer satisfaction across every division – marketing, sales, development, customer service, operations, and executive management – and every business unit – device, network and application. Carrier IQ is unique in the wireless industry because we are the only company embedding diagnostic software in millions of subscribers’ phones. And, we are the only ones who add the “IQ” or smarts to the data. This is Actionable Intelligence – information and analysis you can use to identify problems and more importantly, solve them. And, we are a proven leader with millions of handsets deployed with Carrier IQ software inside.”
http://carrieriq.com/overview/index.htm
From Carrier IQ:
“Carrier IQ’s Mobile Service Intelligence solution eliminates guesswork by automatically providing accurate, real-time data direct from the source – your customers’ handsets. Our powerful platform aggregates, analyzes and delivers that data via easy-to-use web applications that help wireless carriers make smart business decisions. The kind that can dramatically accelerate time to market, reduce operating costs and increase customer satisfaction across every division – marketing, sales, development, customer service, operations, and executive management – and every business unit – device, network and application. Carrier IQ is unique in the wireless industry because we are the only company embedding diagnostic software in millions of subscribers’ phones. And, we are the only ones who add the “IQ” or smarts to the data. This is Actionable Intelligence – information and analysis you can use to identify problems and more importantly, solve them. And, we are a proven leader with millions of handsets deployed with Carrier IQ software inside.”
http://carrieriq.com/overview/index.htm
Apparently, Carrier IQ threatened the security researcher who revealed the capabilities of its software with threat of $150,000 in damages for copyright violations. But they retracted this threat after they were contacted by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), which took up his case and argued that his research into Carrier IQ fell under fair-use rules.
http://informationweek.com/news/security/mobile/232200381
Apparently, Carrier IQ threatened the security researcher who revealed the capabilities of its software with threat of $150,000 in damages for copyright violations. But they retracted this threat after they were contacted by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), which took up his case and argued that his research into Carrier IQ fell under fair-use rules.
http://informationweek.com/news/security/mobile/232200381
Apparently, a less intrusive version is also installed on the iPhone but it can be turned off.
http://blog.chpwn.com/post/13572216737
Apparently, a less intrusive version is also installed on the iPhone but it can be turned off.
http://blog.chpwn.com/post/13572216737
Apple: We Stopped Supporting Carrier IQ With iOS 5
http://allthingsd.com/20111201/apple-we-stopped-supporting-carrieriq-with-ios-5/?reflink=ATD_yahoo_ticker
Apple: We Stopped Supporting Carrier IQ With iOS 5
http://allthingsd.com/20111201/apple-we-stopped-supporting-carrieriq-with-ios-5/?reflink=ATD_yahoo_ticker
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