The device could be susceptible to hackers. President Donald Trump has received a secured phone from the US Secret Service

Sitting next to the US president could be an easily hackable listening device and camera.

That device is the unsecured Android phone used by President Donald Trump, reported The New York Times on Wednesday. Trump was apparently keeping the phone near him and using it to tweet from the White House while watching television.

Trump's use of an unsecured phone comes after an election filled with hacks of the personal communications of Democratic political figures and organizations. Individual phones are easy to hack for anyone motivated enough, security experts say.

"If I can get in and clone your phone, I got you. You won't even know it," said Larry Johnson, a retired US Secret Service agent who now works as chief security officer at CyberSponse.

The Secret Service issued Trump a secured phone for his inauguration. According to Johnson, that phone would have very limited capabilities. President Barack Obama used his Secret Service-issued Blackberry to access the @POTUS Twitter account, so tweeting from a phone is not unheard of from a president. What's potentially dangerous is having the unsecured phone around, as it would be extremely easy to hack, Johnson said.

The White House didn't respond to a request for comment.

Source:
courtesy of CNET

by Laura Hautala

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