A team of international scientists led by Evangelos Bitsikas from Northeastern University has discovered that it is possible to determine the location of a mobile phone user using silent SMS. The person being spied on is unaware of this as silent SMS does not trigger any notification on the smartphone. The researchers used the duration between the sending and receiving of the SMS to track the location of the mobile phone user. However, the method is relatively complex and only works for known locations, making it unsuitable for determining the locations of many mobile phone users. The method is called “Freaky Leaky SMS” and works because mobile networks send SMS through specific routes. When an SMS is delivered, the sender receives a delivery confirmation that cannot be deactivated by the recipient.
To use Freaky Leaky SMS for tracking, comprehensive data must be collected beforehand. The researchers have automated this process and were able to correctly identify the country where a mobile phone is located in 92% of cases. However, the results varied on a regional level, with Belgium achieving the best results, correctly identifying the region in 86% of cases. In Germany, 57 different regions were distinguished, and the researchers were able to correctly assign locations in 68% of cases.
This discovery raises concerns about privacy and the potential for misuse of this technology. Mobile phone users may be unaware that their location is being tracked, and this could be used for nefarious purposes. It is essential to ensure that appropriate measures are in place to protect the privacy of mobile phone users and prevent the misuse of this technology.
