B45/100
Breach · high
SilentAir hackers intercept calls and SMS from inside mobile networks
Tier B · Patch this week – Put it in the sprint
Who’s exposed: Asian mobile operators and their subscribers, mostly in Taiwan
Tier B because: Exploited in the wild OR public exploit
Reach
Attack
Damage
Fix
Exploited in the wild · Secrets exposed
The Brief
- Enea identified a spying group called SilentAir that hijacked equipment inside Asian mobile networks.
- The group intercepted calls and SMS of selected people, mostly in Taiwan.
- Enea found the group's attack sources across at least six Asian mobile operators.
Why it matters
Interception inside operator networks can expose SMS-based two-factor codes and calls, so services relying on SMS verification are weaker against this threat.
The checklist behind the tier
Checklist · 3 of 10 yes
| Yes | Hits tech teams | Judgment: mobile operators' core network nodes are network infrastructure that ops teams run, similar to network appliances. |
| No | Core infrastructure | Judgment: telecom network nodes from one spying campaign are not software nearly every team runs. |
| No | Popular tool | Judgment: niche telecom node equipment, not a widely used framework, tool, platform, OS or package. |
| Yes | Exploited in the wild | SecurityWeek: Enea says SilentAir hijacked mobile network nodes to intercept calls and messages. |
| No | Public exploit | No source says exploit code or a proof-of-concept was published. |
| No | Remote, no login | No source states how the attackers gained access or that no credentials were needed. |
| No | Full takeover | Sources say hacked and hijacked equipment but do not explicitly report code execution or root/admin rights. |
| Yes | Secrets exposed | The Hacker News: group intercepted calls and texts, including SMS 2FA codes, of selected people in Taiwan. |
| No | Supply chain | No source reports a compromised vendor package, update, build pipeline or signing key. |
| No | No fix yet | No source says whether the vendor has or has not shipped a fix. |
Timeline
Full coverage · 2 sources
First seen · 2 sources · Full story page · How tiers are decided