Researcher finds VoLTE metadata could be used to locate users within 100 meters

UK telco Virgin Media O2 has fixed an issue with its 4G Calling feature that allowed users' general location to be discerned by those who called them.

The confirmation was issued in response to a mobile networking specialist publishing research into the mobile network operator's (MNO) implementation of Voice over LTE (VoLTE), and how it was revealing call recipient data to callers, albeit through a few tricky technical steps.

Researcher Daniel Williams said he was able to "trivially" locate call recipients using the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI), and cell ID data sent back by VMO2 servers. He said theoretically, in some cases, this could be accurate to within 100 square meters.

When he published his findings on May 17, Williams said he had not yet received a response after first engaging the MNO in March.

However, a VMO2 spokesperson told The Register that the ...