Cell Phone Cloning

PHONE CLONING

Mobile cell phone cloning means transference of one cellular phone's identity into another phone without the knowledge of its user. In this process the unique identifying feature of a cell phone that distinguishes it from other cell phones is hacked and further reprogrammed into another cellular phone. Each cell phone contains unique ESN (Electronic Serial Number) and MIN (Mobile Identification Number) numbers. With the help of various electronic scanning devices ESN and MIN numbers can easily be cloned in many ways. Once the ESN/MIN pair is captured, the hacker reprograms or changes the microchip of any wireless phone to create a clone of the wireless phone of which the ESN/MIN pair was stolen. It takes 10-15mins for the entire programming process per phone. Any phone call which will now be made with cloned phone will be owed by and traced to a genuine cell phone.

1. Detection of ESN/MIN Pair

There are various devices like cell phones Digital Data Interpreters (DDI) and ESN readers which are used by the hackers to detect ESN and MIN of the mobile phones. Hackers usually sit roadsides where cellular traffic is high and continuously monitor the radio wave transmissions. They record the numbers one by one and later on download them on their computer.

2. ESN/MIN programming in another phone

There is specialized software for cloning the phones called "copycat-box" (one of many). This software can be installed in a computer and ESN/MIN pair can be transferred using it to reprogram a phone. Cloners enter the new identify information into the phones by connecting the cell phones to this software.

CLONED PHONE DETECTION

There are several methods to detect cloned phones over the network. It indicates that the phone is cloned:

• if one call is made from one place and after some interval of time some other call is made from a far away location but with the same phone identity;

• if the user is often getting wrong number calls;

• if the user is facing trouble in placing outgoing calls;

• if strange calls are appearing on the cell phone bills.

IMPACT OF PHONE CLONING

Many illegal activities relating to child trafficking, women trafficking, drugs, etc. are done with the help of cloned phones. Before the crime department is able to detect the call location or numbers, the criminals throw the phone and it becomes difficult to trace them. Phone cloning also leads to a loss of millions of dollars for the cell phone industry every year. As the cloners are able to reconfigure a cell phone and the calls made through it are billed to the legitimate users, but the cellular industry need not require its genuine customers to pay for any illegal calls made from their account.

PREVENTIVE MEASURES AND EFFECTIVENESS

Authentication is the only industry standard way of avoiding cell phone cloning fraud. It is considered as one of the most robust and reliable method for eliminating phone cloning. Every cell phone contains a radio fingerprint in its transmission signal and the identity of the cell phone is checked by matching the fingerprint at service provider end while making a call. This fingerprint remains unique to the mobile phone despite of any change to the phone's ESN, IMEI, or MIN numbers. Therefore, when any discrepancies between the fingerprint and the ESN, IMEI, or MIN numbers are found, the cellular companies easily trace cloned phones.

By - Dr. Neha Kishore, Associate Professor, CSE, Chitkara University, H.P.