Gemalto SIM cards producer was hacked by the UK Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) along with US National Security Agency (NSA), the Intercept revealed on Thursday. The agencies stole Gemalto's network encryption keys, which enabled them to monitor calls and data transfers on mobile phones across the globe.
"These actions completely undermine the UK's moral authority when talking about the importance of freedom of the internet and the discouragement of state sponsored cyber-attacks," Emma Carr, director of Big Brother Watch, told Sputnik.
Following the revelation, GCHQ said in a statement that it did not comment on intelligence matters. GCHQ added that the UK interception regime was entirely compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.
Major mobile operators, such as AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, Sprint, China Mobile and other providers use SIM cards produced by Gemalto, which is based in the Netherlands.
The SIM card producer is currently investigating the breach.
On Friday, the company issued a statement saying it was unable to verify whether the case was related to the numerous cyberattacks on it in the past.
The Intercept claimed it had received the information about the hack from a secret 2010 document from GCHQ provided to it by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden.
