Top 7 IMSI Catcher Detection Solutions For 2020: How to Detect and Mitigate the Risks of IMSI Catchi

Available IMSI catcher detection solutions today can be roughly divided into two categories: consumer-level and military-grade solutions. The software solutions offered to users online are, as mentioned above, only partially effective in protecting users and their devices. While they may provide some peace of mind to the average smartphone user, it is simply not enough to protect sensitive corporate data often found on the devices of company employees.

Detecting cellular attacks requires information that Google and Apple do not want to give to consumers. So solutions to mitigate the attacks are expensive, bulky or limited to a narrow selection of devices. There are many fake or ineffective solutions that rely on false positives to fool consumers The global cellular network is so diverse and anomalous to make many heuristic detection difficult, but not impossible. Deep investigation is required to actually track down if an IMSI catcher was ever used. Although boutique solutions can detect IMSI catchers it remains limited to specific devices or come with other drawbacks.

Top 7 IMSI Catcher Detection Solutions For 2020

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In GSM, the network is not authenticated which allows for man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks. Attackers can track traffic and trace users of cellular networks by creating a rogue base transceiver station (BTS). Such a defect in addition to the need for backward compatibility of mobile networks makes all GSM, UMTS, and LTE networks susceptible to MITMs. These attacks are conducted using IMSI-Catchers (ICs). Most of the solutions proposed for detecting ICs in the literature are based on using specific mobile devices with root access. Also, they cannot identify ICs to which users are not connected. In this paper, we propose an approach called YAICD for detecting ICs in the GSM network. YAICD consists of a sensor that can be installed on Android mobile devices. It detects ICs by extracting 15 parameters from signals received from BTSs. We also established a lab-scale testbed to evaluate YAICD for various detection parameters and for comparing it against existing solutions in the literature. The experimental results show that YAICD not only successfully detects ICs using the parameters but also identifies ICs to which users are not yet connected to the network.

Due to the dramatic rise of IC attacks on cellular networks, several system and client-side solutions have been developed to identify ICs. FBS-Radar and SeaGlass are among system solutions for IC detection. These methods need database information of cell locations, and their implementation is costly. Therefore, they cannot be used by laymen and must be implemented by operators and judicial authorities. SnoopSnitch and AIMSICD are well-known examples of client-side applications in this area. SnoopSnitch utilizes the highest number of IC identification parameters, but it can only be used on specific mobile devices with root access. In addition, it does not identify ICs to which users have not yet connected. AIMSICD, on the other hand, recognizes ICs to which users have not yet connected, but it is in the alpha version and its practical effectiveness has not been substantiated.

IMSI Catcher Detector is a method to detect the presence of an IMSI catcher. IMSI catcher detectors can be either hardware-based or software-based. Depending on your chosen solution, they can identify IMSI catchers, network jammers, or other baseband attacks. Most detection systems are compatible with all network operators and provide visualization for effective detection.

FirstPoint Mobile Guard is a military-grade SIM card-based IMSI catcher detection system that prevents man-in-the-middle attacks using highly secure technology on the SIM-card level. It offers continuous network-based maximum security without requiring complex configurations.

AIMSICD is an open-source IMSI catcher detection system for Android systems. It provides multiple features, like a warning if the connection is not encrypted. It also includes real-time network security monitoring and map-based visualization.

IMSI Catcher Detector is a method to detect the presence of an IMSI catcher. The hackers are a serious threat as they might use an IMSI catcher to intercept communication. There are different methods to detect IMSI catchers. IMSI catcher detectors can be either hardware-based or software-based. IMSI-catcher detectors can identify IMSI catchers, network jammers, or other baseband attacks. Most detection systems are compatible with all network operators and provide visualization for effective detection.

Osmocom is an open-source software-based firmware that can detect and fingerprint the characteristics of the IMSI catcher of GSM phones. However, it can work with only old phones and old GSM technology.There are some mobile applications like SnoopSnitch, Cell Spy Catcher, and Radio Sentinel that can detect IMSI catchers.IMSI catcher Detectors can be divided into military-grade and consumer-level detectors. The software-based IMSI catcher detectors are not fully effective for protecting and detecting IMSI catchers. Some of the most effective IMSI catcher detection systems are briefly discussed below:

FirstPoint Mobile Guard is a military-grade SIM card-based IMSI catcher detection system that prevents man-in-the-middle attacks using highly secured technology on the SIM-card level. It offers continuous network-based maximum security without requiring complex configurations.

AIMSICD is an open-source IMSI catcher detection system for Android systems. It provides multiple features like a warning if the connection is not encrypted. It provides real-time network security monitoring and map-based visualization. 2ff7e9595c