Potential Threats to Mobile Network Security

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ABSTRACT:
Can virus infect the mobile phones? It is a million dollar question that has no answer up to now. The chance is increasing day by day and recent hoax virus, Spam SMS worms is an evidence of it. Due to the financial aspects associated with wireless communications, this subject is under through research now.
The WAP protocol is now the leading standard for information services on wireless terminals like digital mobile phones. By the use of WAP, there is a possibility of wireless devices like mobile phones, getting infected with virus and worms. Though up to now there is no such attack, as the usage of script languages increases, there is a chance of malicious code injection.
Wireless application protocol is an application environment and a set of communication protocols for wireless devices. It enables the wireless devices, independent access to the Internet. WAP bridges the mobile world and the Internet. It also connects the corporate intranets. Due to this users can access the same amount of information by using a packet-sized device as they can from a desktop PC.
The WAP standard is based on Internet standards (HTML, XML and TCP/IP). It consists of a WML language, a WMLScript, and a Wireless Telephony Application Interface (WTAI). The use of WAP-enabled mobile phones is booming. Cellular phones with support for WAP allow users to access a wide variety of services. WAP enables users to do on-line banking, monitor stock markets, use email, and access the Internet – all from their mobile phones. New services are being developed everyday and as more robust scripting becomes possible, the chance for malicious code increases.
This paper will discuss the threats with current WAP protocol and how changes in the protocol and the increase in its usage will enable entry of real viruses. Future threat scenarios are presented along with suggestions to avoid these problems.
This paper also presents an overview on WAP, WAP Push, WML, and WMLScript and their ability to host malicious software. Finally to detect such future threats, potential solution placement will be presented.
Imagine the situation that you are sending a file to your friend, which contains sensitive data and is to be protected from disclosure. A third person gains unauthorized access to monitor the transmission and is able to modify the contents of the file. Consider another situation where instead of modifying the contents the third person constructs a new file and forwards it to your friend as if it had come from you. So neither your data remains protected nor will your friend get the correct data. It is not surprising to face such kind of problems, since as the network is growing day by day many such problems related to security of data are coming into picture.