The Challenge
Cybercrime and SIM Swaps
Cybercrime is expected to cost individuals and businesses $10.5 trillion USD annually by 2025.
SIM swaps are a devastating form of attack that are on the rise for mobile phones. A Princeton University study from 2020 found that 80% of SIM swap attacks are successful.
A SIM swap is a form of social engineering in which the hacker fools or bribes a mobile service provider into issuing a new SIM card for a number. Once they get access to your phone data, it’s easy to request new passwords, take over accounts, and get access to finances or private information. Cryptocurrency traders are often a target, as are any kind of financial professional, executive, or celebrity.
Traditional mobile service providers are inundated by thousands of legitimate requests for new SIM cards every day. Their processes are geared for efficiency, and after a few standard security checks (often involving information that can be found on users’ social media accounts), their employees typically approve the request