Possible Phone Infiltration?

[joiedevivre]

My friend has an Android/Galaxy phone, and he works for a large company that is prominent in our area.

On occassion (and only rarely), he used to use it at work for texting and, less often, phone calls. A few months ago, his employer cracked down on the use of cell phones at work and deemed that it should only be used for urgent calls. For the most part, my friend complied with these rules.

One day, however, he tried to send a text message to a family member, and a warning from his employer popped up on his cell phone!

How was it even possible for his employer to display a message on his personal cell phone? Was the phone infiltrated?

Has the private information (photos, videos, emails, etc) in his phone been compromised? What should he do at this point? This happened earlier this month.

 

[SCxnoxiousTechie]

Maybe they got a software that can infiltrate the unit . since you mention that it is a large company so that means it is possible to do so.. awesome ..

 

[Nukem]

I'm pretty sure you've heard the term "Big brother is watching"?

Yes it can and is done. Look at our ISP's. They can send you a warning email if you download something illegal. If the user was on a Wifi network, then it can be monitored, and therefore tracked.

If all that was sent is a warning message, then I wouldn't worry to much... but I would still not use the phone at work, plain and simple. If I need to make a call, go outside, or use a land line at work.

 

[S0ULphIRE]

He must've been on their wireless network, no? I know iMessage and a few sms apps can work over a wifi data connection; not sure if android default will?

It must do though, because if the message was sent via a mobile carrier then the company shouldn't have anything to do with it. They don't own the towers, or the sim, or the phone; I honestly can't think how they'd do it without seeing you do it through a security cam or something. Anything else would, as far as I know, be highly difficult and/or illegal?
/speculation

 

[joiedevivre]

He wasn't on their wireless network. My friend seldom uses the Internet on his phone.

 

[KSoD]

Are you sure? Does he have WiFi turned on? If so he could have connected without knowing. Just cause he says he doesnt connect, doesnt mean he never has and as such wasnt at that time. WiFi must be off or never connected to that network for him not to have been on it at that time.

Cause if he had WiFi on, and has previously connected to it, then he most likely connected automatically. That is how Android is setup. I never have to turn on or connect my phone while at home, I turn on WiFi and it connects. Could have just as easily happened to him.

So just because he seldom uses it, doesnt mean it isnt active.

 

[joiedevivre]

No, my friend has never even used WiFi on his phone, and he has never been connected to his employer's network. When he does use the Internet (which is rarely), it's his carrier's 3G network.

After the meeting during which his employer issued the directive to only use cell phones for urgent calls, everyone was asked to complete a form and disclose their cell phone numbers.

 

[SCxnoxiousTechie]

I'm pretty sure you've heard the term "Big brother is watching"?

Yes it can and is done. Look at our ISP's. They can send you a warning email if you download something illegal. If the user was on a Wifi network, then it can be monitored, and therefore tracked.

If all that was sent is a warning message, then I wouldn't worry to much... but I would still not use the phone at work, plain and simple. If I need to make a call, go outside, or use a land line at work.

Agree