--- description: 60 Minutes shocked some viewers Sunday evening when it showed a team of hackers listening in on a phone call between a reporter and a congressman. title: How To Avoid That Scary '60 Minutes' iPhone Hack image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt35ebaf8e8d8994f8/69888ccca988ca7f5c6b72d0/fbi-unlocks-iphone-san-bernardino-apple-case-over.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Tech](/tag/time-section-tech/) ## Tech Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # How To Avoid That Scary _60 Minutes_ iPhone Hack ## Video: How Real is the Threat of a Cyberattack? [Watch (HLS stream): How Real is the Threat of a Cyberattack?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/D5Y8Ll5v.m3u8) (2:33)  _Published 2015-07-07. The threat of a state-sponsored cyberattack on the U.S. is inevitable and can potentially destabilize the global system._  by [Alex Fitzpatrick](/author/alex-fitzpatrick/)  ## Alex Fitzpatrick Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 18, 2016 2:39 PM CUT  The new Apple Inc. iPhone SE smartphone is displayed after an event in Cupertino, California, U.S., on Monday, March 21, 2016. The new Apple Inc. iPhone SE smartphone is displayed after an event in Cupertino, California, U.S., on Monday, March 21, 2016.David Paul Morris—Bloomberg/Getty Images  by [Alex Fitzpatrick](/author/alex-fitzpatrick/)  ## Alex Fitzpatrick Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 18, 2016 2:39 PM CUT _60 Minutes_ shocked some viewers Sunday evening when it [showed](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/60-minutes-hacking-your-phone/ "undefined") a team of hackers listening in on a phone call between a reporter and a congressman. The hack, carried out with the politician’s consent, was meant to demonstrate a security flaw in the global communications grid. The Germany-based hackers pulled off the stunt by targeting a system called SS7 that allows phones on different wireless carriers to exchange information with one another, enabling roaming, cross-carrier billing and other features. Think of it as a middleman between different wireless carriers. The hackers were targeting the network, not the individual phones on either end of the call. That means the hack would work even if the congressman, Democrat Ted Lieu of California, was using a password or taking other steps to protect his phone’s contents. Security researchers have [previously alerted](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2014/12/18/german-researchers-discover-a-flaw-that-could-let-anyone-listen-to-your-cell-calls-and-read-your-texts/ "undefined") the world to flaws in SS7\. But some vulnerabilities clearly remain. Some observers argue the hole hasn’t been filled because it enables governments to snoop on surveillance targets. **What can you do to avoid the** **_60 Minutes_** **hack?** The best option is to forego your phone’s normal calling feature in favor of communication apps that offer what’s called “end-to-end encryption.” With them, your conversations are secured from the time they’re sent to the moment they’re received. One popular example is [Signal](https://whispersystems.org/ "undefined"), favored by journalists and security experts. (Edward Snowden is among the software’s fans.) All computer security advice, however, should carry this important caveat: Pretty much anything can be hacked. If you are seriously concerned about your information staying secure, it’s best not to send that data over a communications system of any kind. _60 Minutes’_ demonstration highlights a wrinkle in the ongoing debate over privacy and national security. While law enforcement groups say encryption apps like Signal make it harder to solve crimes, others argue they offer law-abiding citizens a way to keep their communications safe from prying eyes and ears. Representative Lieu, who sits on House subcommittees for information technology and national security, argues in favor of strong encryption. “You cannot have 300-some million Americans—and really, right, the global citizenry—be at risk of having their phone conversations intercepted with a known flaw, simply because some intelligence agencies might get some data,” he said on the show. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4297477/60-minutes-iphone-hack/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4297477/60-minutes-iphone-hack/"},"headline":"How To Avoid That Scary 60 Minutes iPhone Hack","datePublished":"2016-04-18T14:39:09.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:49:52.190Z","description":"There's a straightforward workaround","url":"https://time.com/4297477/60-minutes-iphone-hack/","keywords":["Tech","Security"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt35ebaf8e8d8994f8/69888ccca988ca7f5c6b72d0/fbi-unlocks-iphone-san-bernardino-apple-case-over.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alex Fitzpatrick","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alex-fitzpatrick/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt35ebaf8e8d8994f8/69888ccca988ca7f5c6b72d0/fbi-unlocks-iphone-san-bernardino-apple-case-over.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Apple Inc. 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