15 Nov 2014
Apple responds to iOS ‘Masque Attack’ threats.
Once again, another iOS vulnerability has been reported that allow
malicious software to be installed in your iphone or ipad in place of an app
without your knowledge.
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| Mobiles and Gadgets groove |
This prompted the U.S. government to warn
Apple gadget owners on Thursday to look out for hackers exploiting a newly discovered vulnerability in the mobile operating system (iOS). According to the
report, the technique takes advantage of a security weakness that allows an untrusted
app (with the same “bundle identifier” as that of a legitimate app) to replace
the legitimate app on an affected device, while keeping all of the user’s
data, the warning states. “This vulnerability exists because iOS does not
enforce matching certificates for apps with the same bundle identifier.”
This
“Masque Attack” was revealed earlier this week by the network security firm
FireEye. In FireEye’s
report, this vulnerability has
been identified in iOS 7.1.1, 7.1.2, 8.0, 8.1, and the 8.1.1 beta on both
jailbroken and non-jailbroken devices. The government warns iOS users not to install apps from sources other than Apple’s
official app store or their own organizations, among other precautions.
However,
Apple has released a statement addressing this breach via a spokesperson to iMore:
Below is an excerpt of Apple's statement to iMore:
"We
designed OS X and iOS with built-in security safeguards to help protect
customers and warn them before installing potentially malicious software,"
an Apple spokesperson told iMore. "We're not aware of any customers that
have actually been affected by this attack. We encourage customers to only
download from trusted sources like the App Store and to pay attention to any .warnings
as they download apps. Enterprise users installing custom apps should install
apps from their company's secure website."
Though Apple says it hasn't received any reports from users yet, there are reports in the media that thousands of users have fallen victim to this vulnerability.
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