The ‘Secret Life of Your Mobile Phone’ is a topic at Science Museum Lates, on Wednesday, August 31. Senior Security Analyst at SensePost, Glenn Wilkinson, will be joined by Technology Producer at Channel 4 News, Geoff White, for an interactive session at the Kensington, London museum. There they will discuss how, what and why mobile devices are communicating, even when the owner isn’t.
This is the latest in educational events in which SensePost staff are engaging with the public, raising awareness about the changing threat landscape, as well as offering practical and helpful advice to help mitigate the risk of being attacked successfully.
Glen Wilkinson says: “The majority of people using connected mobile devices are not aware of what is going behind the scenes, even when their phone is in their pocket. Masses of data is constantly being captured from phones and the apps installed on them, and sent to the likes of Google and Apple. Then there is the problem of organised cyber-criminals, with no regard for data protection laws, infiltrating these devices to steal data and personal information for monetary gain.”
Wilkinson and White will use live demonstrations to provide insight in to what information is being shared legitimately, as well as and how easy it is for someone with the prerequisite skills, to infiltrate a device by stealth and intercept data without the user ever being aware.
Wilkinson adds: “One issue we will shine a light one, are location-based apps and services. The have huge merits for our daily lives, where tracking a run, finding a restaurant, or jumping on the Pokémon Go craze. We think attendees at our Lates session will be amazed and horrified buy just how much insight organisations, whether good or bad, can gain from location information alone. And just how easy it is for them to access it!”
The Science Museum Lates event is free to attend; doors open at 6.45pm, closing at 10pm. Visit: www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/lates.
