Its not clear to me just what is meant by "hacking" a cell phone

[ThomWV]

Just what was done concerning those cell phones that were 'hacked'? Does it mean that conversations were listened in on or does it mean that messages that were left for a number or by a number were listened to or does it mean something entirely different? I just don't understand what it was that exactly happened with the Murdoch thing.

[AngryAmish]

1. I think they listened to the voice mails

1. Get phone number.
2. Brute force the pin.
3. Listen.
4. Profit!

[Blue_Tires]

2. I know that in least one case

the voicemail service was cracked and those messages analyzed...

[TheWraith]

3. They were accessing the users' voicemail accounts.

Nothing to do really with the phones themselves--they were dialing the users' voicemail, then using the default passcodes (which are usually the last four digits of your phone number), which many people are too lazy to change.

[trumad]

6. Actually it's very easy to hack the passwords for VM's.

It's not because people are lazy.

[TheWraith]

7. "Easy" is a relative term.

A voicemail PIN is typically four digits, allowing for 10,000 possible combinations. If you allow for an average of 15 seconds for each attempt, then it would take about 41 hours of continuous work to brute-force a PIN.

[trumad]

9. That depends if you try every combination...

Point is... I betcha Brute force was used in the hacking.

[Old Codger]

4. They

Hacked the password for voice mail, listened to the messages and then deleted them so there would be room for more, this wsa done to the young girl who was kidnapped and murdered. Since the messages were being listened to and deleted the parents believed that she was the one doing it so thought she was still alive. They also hacked into servicemen who were killed and used that info to "scoop" the other papers.

[LiberalAndProud]

5. voicemail, calendar, email

A lot of people keep everything on their cell phone.

[izquierdista]

8. That's all right buddy

I leave mine on the windowsill most of the time too. :pals: It does come in handy though when you go someplace and are expecting a call. You can put it in your pocket and it's like a "landline" with an infinite extension cord.