Report: 600 million cellphones have serious security flaw

By Rick Couri of KRMG

WASHINGTON, DC — A cyber security firm called NowSecure says they warned cell phone giant Samsung about the problem with the Galaxy late last year.

Researchers say they are speaking out now because there has been no movement to fix the problem.

‘We needed to inform them about the risk,’ NowSecure CEO Andrew Hoog told CNNMoney. ‘It would be naive to think other entities would not be capable of finding this and executing it.’

The company says the problem lies with keyboard software. Hackers can break into the program and access information. Channel3000 writes, “the flaw potentially allows hackers to spy on anyone using a Samsung Galaxy phone.”

And it can come at nearly any time. “You can be exposed by using public or insecure Wi-Fi,” they point out. “But some researchers think users are exposed even on cell phone networks.”

Hoog drove home the seriousness of the issue saying on a scale of 1-10, this “vulnerability stood at 8.3.” CNN says government agencies like the NSA use the Galaxy, making the threat even more dangerous.

Samsung released a statement saying they take “emerging security threats very seriously and [is] committed to providing the latest in mobile security.’

They also promise a fix but gave no timetable on when it may be released.

See if your device is on the list of impacted models here.

If it is, NowSecure is recommending 3 initial remedies for you:

• Avoid insecure wi-fi networks
• Use a different mobile device
• Contact carriers for patch information and timing