Jamming Cellphones with Text Messages

Steve writes "Some Penn State professors and students have published a way to jam cellular voice service with simple text messages. From the article: 'Because text messages are transmitted on the same signal that is used to set up voice calls, just 165 messages a second is enough to disrupt all cellphones in Manhattan.' Cellular providers, of course, fired back, one stating that it 'constantly and aggressively monitors potential threats to the integrity and security of its network.'"

Comments

Re:u r hot

[rk87]

Easy enough, about 3 or 4 japanese school girls should be able to send a sustained rate of 180 messages a second.

No 12 Days of Christmas

[Anonymous Coward]

Last year I had a friend that wrote an app that would text message a verse from the 12 days of Christmas every day, but something went horribly wrong and I was getting messaged a verse from that damn song every few milliseconds for a couple hours straight. Not fun.

Hey Steve! (you ass)

Re:165 msgs a sec OR

[Anonymous Coward]

So it costs a bunch to send those messages? So what? Bad guys can have some real (or fraudulant) financial resources when that's part of their plan.

1) Sign cell phone contract with monthly billing.
2) Send massive amounts of text messages.
3) Blow self up.
4) Don't care if phone bill is high at end of month - having too much fun with the 72 virgins.
5) ...
6) Profit?

Re:One problem.

[MightyMartian]

$990/minute, assuming a charge of 10 cents per message.

Ch-rist! For that price, I could have a dozen women heavy breathing on my cellphone, telling me how much they love it when I do that to them!