’60 Minutes’ Hacks Congressman’s Phone for Security Report

Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), a member of the House Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on Information Technology, recently agreed on an episode of “60 Minutes” to subject himself to an intentional hacking from a team who claimed to be looking for flaws in mobile phone systems in an effort to better inform the public. The team sent an infected email Lieu, which Lieu then opened, and alarmingly the hackers were then able to steal Lieu’s phone number, only to use the flaw they had found to continue to access nearly everything else in his phone, including listening to and recording his calls, tracking his movements and viewing his contacts. When asked for comment, Lieu had two reactions: “First, it’s really creepy. And second, it makes me angry,” he said. “They could hear any call of pretty much anyone who has a smartphone. It could be stock trades you want someone to execute. It could be calls with a bank. … Last year, the president of the United States called me on my cellphone. And we discussed some issues. So if the hackers were listening in, they would know that phone conversation. And that’s immensely troubling.”