With each new release of iOS, Apple has been improving the security of the mobile operating system, adding new features, inserting exploit mitigations, and taking away avenues for attack. In the forthcoming iOS 9.0 release, the company is continuing this movement with the addition of two-factor authentication and a number of other security features. Last […]
Tag Archives: iPhone
What Can Siri Help You With Today?
This post is about cool things you can do with Siri, and some you might wish it didn’t do. Stick with me to the end of this post, and I’ll even share with you a funny video of what Siri “really” looks like…
“Siri, please save my iPhone from the messages of death”
This somewhat melodramatic title was posted on TheRegister and reports incoming messages that trigger a bug in the iOS, inducing applications to crash…
The solution?
Apple suggests Siri as a temporary fix (full instructions here). One of the options includes asking Siri to “reply to the malicious message”. That’s right – if you’re being picked on by a big bad hacker who is sending you “messages of death”, get big sister Siri to reply with a digital tongue-lashing – sweet!
“Siri, please turn on the light, switch on the stero and start my car”
Back in 2014, there was excitement surrounding the application called GoogolPLex, which hooked up a hacked version of Siri to the Internet of things. Suddenly you could use Siri for all sorts of applications, as seen in this video:
What’s particularly clever, is the name: “GoogolPlex, turn on the lights” is actually understood by Siri as “Google, please turn on the lights”. Then, instead of running a Google search, GoogolPlex redirects the requests to its servers and uses API’s that interact with your hardware to process your requests.
GoogolPlex, beam me up!
Siri, stop recording our conversations…
You love using Siri? She is a great listener (granted, with dubious hearing). However, if you’re also a staunch believe in privacy, you might want to reconsider what it is exactly you tell your beloved assistant. As reported in this post, all voice recordings are stored for 6 months, after which time they keep the recording for another 18 months but delete the number associated with it… In case you’re now thinking of switching to Microsoft’s equally friendly Cortana, the policy is very similar…
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And now, for a look at what Siri looks like, as seen in Raj’s vivid imagination (from the Big Bang Theory):
The post What Can Siri Help You With Today? appeared first on Avira Blog.
Watch out! A simple Arabic text message can crash your iPhone!
Do you have an iPhone? Yes? Well, then the following news may be of interest to you!
A new security flaw has been discovered in iOS, Apple’s operating system. This vulnerability affects iPhones running iOS version 8.3, although other versions could also be affected.
According to the BBC, a specially crafted text message can cause vulnerable devices to crash and reboot. More precisely, the malicious message, containing Arabic characters, causes iMessage to crash and the iPhone to reboot.
Apple is aware of the issue and has announced they will make a fix available in a software update. We’ll keep you updated with any new developments!
The post Watch out! A simple Arabic text message can crash your iPhone! appeared first on MediaCenter Panda Security.
“Unicode of Death†Crashes Your iPhone
The newly discovered security flaw on iOS crashes different messaging apps (like iMessage and your SMS app – basically all apps that use Apple’s CoreText library) on your iPhone and possibly your Apple watch when being sent a specific string of text. In addition to that it causes your mobile to reboot immediately. The bug was first reported on Reddit.com where some people were complaining about it.
According to TheRegister, this is what happens once your mobile receives the message containing the “Unicode of Death”, a string of text including Arabic characters and different symbols: “The bug causes CoreText to access memory that is invalid, which forces the operating system to kill off the currently running program: which could be your text message app, your terminal, or in the case of the notification screen, a core part of the OS.”
And sickestdancer98 from Reddit explains: “I can tell you it is due to how the banner notifications process the Unicode text. The banner briefly attempts to present the incoming text and then “gives up” thus the crash. On a jailbroken device, this ultimately leads to safe mode. However, on a stock iOS device, there is no safe mode hence the respring after the crash. That is why this only happens when you are not in the message because the banner is what truly crashes the entire system. Is this a possible vulnerability? Maybe. Has this been around already? Roughly since iOS 6. Can it be fixed/patched? That, my friends, is up to Apple. I hope I cleared things up a little bit if it did help in anyway, shape, or form.“
Apple is already working on fix which they’ll make available in an upcoming software update. Until then there are a couple of workarounds floating around online, one if them being to just turn off the lock screen notifications for now.
The post “Unicode of Death” Crashes Your iPhone appeared first on Avira Blog.
Bug causes iPhones to crash when sent malicious text message
An exploit has been discovered that causes iPhones and iPads to reboot when sent a string of malicious text.
The post Bug causes iPhones to crash when sent malicious text message appeared first on We Live Security.
No iOS Zone, the vulnerability that enables DoS attacks on Apple devices
Two researchers surprised people by demonstrating how they could carry out a denial of service (DoS) attack on iOS devices.
The post No iOS Zone, the vulnerability that enables DoS attacks on Apple devices appeared first on We Live Security.
1,500 iOS apps open to simple man-in-the-middle attacks
Around 1,500 apps for iPhone and iPad contain an HTTPS vulnerability making it ‘trivial’ for hackers to perform man-in-the-middle attacks to steal passwords, bank details and other private information.
The post 1,500 iOS apps open to simple man-in-the-middle attacks appeared first on We Live Security.
How to transfer your data from iPhone to Android
Transferring all your data from iPhone to Android may seem like a hassle, but these 5 simple tips will make the transition a lot easier.
The post How to transfer your data from iPhone to Android appeared first on We Live Security.
“The new iPhone 6 recharges with two minutes in the microwaveâ€: A new urban myth about Apple
Remember when some Apple users ‘lost’ their phones after believing stories about the iOS7 making the iPhone waterproof?
After the presentation of the latest new features in Apple devices and the new iOS8 operating system, the Internet is full of articles either in praise of or criticizing the company’s latest efforts. Users, eager to find all the latest information and the best tips on how to get the most from the new iPhone 6, scour forums and blogs to stay up-to-speed with everything about these new releases.
That’s why it’s no surprise to find these types of practical jokes doing the rounds on the Web, or to encounter some poor unsuspecting user, who perhaps expecting more than is reasonable from the new device, falls for the trick.
This story took the form of an advert, similar in style to the one launched by Apple on 4chan, announcing the new ‘Wave’ feature of iPhone, which could supposedly recharge the phone in the microwave.
So do you believe everything you read on the Internet?
More | iOS 8. Apple increases user privacy
The post “The new iPhone 6 recharges with two minutes in the microwaveâ€: A new urban myth about Apple appeared first on MediaCenter Panda Security.