SIM card maker claims NSA probably behind 'sophisticated' hack

SIM card giant Gemalto said Wednesday that the National Security Agency and its British counterpart, the Government Communications Headquarters, were likely behind a "particularly sophisticated intrusion" of its systems a few years ago.

"The operation very probably happened," Gemalto Chief Executive Olivier Piou said, adding that it was "difficult to prove our conclusions legally, so we're not going to take legal action."

Gemalto launched an internal investigation after a report last week named the NSA and GCHQ as the culprits behind hacks on its systems in 2010 and 2011. Despite the breach, the company said the hackers did not compromise the encryption keys in its security chips.—Jon Terbush

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