U.S. intelligence agencies have reported discovering and seizing a network of telecommunications equipment in the New York area capable of disrupting mobile phone service.
The devices were located near the United Nations General Assembly , which was attended this week by dozens of world leaders.
According to the agency, the network included more than 100,000 SIM cards and approximately 300 servers . The equipment allowed the sending of anonymous encrypted messages and could interfere with emergency services .
According to one official, the system was capable of sending up to 30 million text messages per minute and the Secret Service had never seen an operation of that scale before.
” Given the timing, location, and potential for significant disruption to New York City telecommunications networks that these devices could have caused, the agency acted quickly to shut down the network ,” the Secret Service said in a statement.
The equipment was discovered in August at several sites within a 56-kilometer radius of UN headquarters.
The discovery followed a months-long investigation, initiated after three senior U.S. officials received anonymous “threat phone calls” in the spring. Among them were a Secret Service agent and two White House officials.
An initial analysis of data from some SIM cards has revealed links to at least one foreign government , as well as to criminals already known to U.S. law enforcement, including members of a cartel.
“ We will continue to investigate who is behind this network and what its objectives were, including the potential disruption of government and emergency communications during the visit of world leaders to New York ,” said Matt McCool, head of the Secret Service’s New York office.
Published photographs show server racks filled with SIM cards and antennas . According to McCool, this network could have disabled cell towers and “effectively paralyzed mobile networks.”
Experts described the operation as costly and technologically advanced. According to Anthony Ferrante, head of cybersecurity at the consulting firm FTI and a former White House and FBI official, the discovered network was likely a spying operation. He added that such equipment could also be used to intercept communications.
The operation also involved the U.S. Department of Justice, the New York Police Department, the Office of National Intelligence, and Homeland Security Investigations . According to McCool, the investigation is ongoing and ” there is no reason to believe similar devices won’t be found in other cities.”
During the search, in addition to the SIM servers, the officers also discovered prohibited substances, illegal weapons, computers and mobile phones.
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