The news was posted by the Carnegie Mellon University CERT database. The vulnerability in question targets LTE wireless networks and takes advantage of the way some US carriers have implemented the technology on their respective networks. This attack makes use of the way LTE has been imlpemented by the networks in question. Android devices on other carriers like T-mobile are not reported to be affected by the vulnerability. If exploited, attackers could circumvent Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), often used in voice calls and instant messaging, to gain access to a victim’s device. The attackers could then initiate the denial of service (DDoS) attacks on a wireless network. Once a victims device is accessed thus, it opens the floodgates for a variety of attacks. The flaw is because of the way LTE is implemented. Older protocols used circuit switching to transfer data, LTE uses packet switching. Packet switching was the chosen method as it is more cost & network efficient. Furthermore, the mechanism makes it possible for the system to detect if a network route is faulty and automatically finds another way to send the data. T-mobile has since released a statement confirming the issue and also stating that they have resolved it. Apple iPhone users need not worry as Apple products seem to be safe from the flaw for now. A Google spokesperson has stated that Google would roll out a fix for the said flaw for Nexus devices in their monthly security patch in November. ACM researchers.
