The hacker involved in the T-Mobile Data Breach 2021 accused the company of "awful" security. The incident, which exposed nearly 50 million customer information, might not have been a sophisticated attack. Users now question the security of T-Mobile data centers.
The T-Mobile hacker recently revealed himself as John Binns in an interview with The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). Binns reportedly provided evidence to support his claims and revealed many things regarding his successful hack.
T-Mobile Data Leak Because of 'Awful' Security
Binns said he used readily available tools (which were not identified for safety purposes) to locate weak security spots on T-Mobile servers. He later discovered an unprotected router exposed on the internet. Through this router, Binns accessed the data center near East Wenatchee, Washington.
The hacked data center gave Binns another access point for more than 100 T-Mobile servers. Binns said it took him a week to delve through customer data, which also made him panic due to its data size. Information hacked included millions of users' personal data like names, birthdates, Social Security numbers, and cellphone numbers. According to WSJ, Binns implied that he collaborated with others during the hack.
T-Mobile Data Breach 2021 Hacker and His Motive
In WSJ's report, Binns claimed a career background as a hacker who created cheats for popular video games. Binns also claimed he has a bad relationship with U.S. intelligence services.
According to The Verge, Binns filed a lawsuit in 2020 against the CIA, FBI, DOJ, and other agencies to demand what information they had on him. The lawsuit also accused the government of coercing him to buy Stinger missiles from an FBI-owned website and attacking Binns with psychic and energy weapons. Lastly, the lawsuit claimed that the government was involved with Binns' alleged kidnapping and torture.
Binns told WSJ that he attacked T-Mobile to "generate noise" and draw attention to him. With these reports, it is hard to determine whether Binns is telling the truth or not.
T-Mobile Users Are Warned About Data Leak
If Binns' statements hold true, it suggests that T-Mobile offers poor security on its data servers. To highlight, data centers and routers must never be exposed to hackers on the internet. Also, all data should have been encrypted, especially between data servers. Lastly, they should have applied multiple security features, which would independently trigger different alarms per server breach.
Reports from Engadget said that T-Mobile declined to comment on Binns' claims. Instead, the company asserts it's "confident" to have closed all security holes during the breach. Notably, this is the third breach in two years on T-Mobile servers. Users are losing confidence in its data security.
For worried users, especially victims of the T-Mobile data breach, it is recommended that you try third-party apps to protect your accounts.
For customers worried about their personal details, it is recommended that you use identity monitoring services.
Moreover, those worried about their accounts being stolen, here are four suggestions to secure your accounts.
Related Article: T-Mobile Data Breach August 2021 Update: 8.6 Million Active Customers Exposed, PINs Leaked!
