Shop for Apple applications (Apple Store) tends to be regarded as a safe haven for downloads for iPhones and iPads.
However, on Monday in China suffered what is considered the first cyber attack . large scale against the Apple Store, something that left surprised users and the company itself
Apple acknowledged the security breach and said it is taking steps to remove the malicious code: the call XcodeGhost virus.
The virus “enagañó” some developers, quiene created applications that were available at the store despite being infected, thus opening the possibility to steal data from end users.
“We’ve eliminated the Apple Store applications that we have created with this counterfeit software,” he said Apple spokeswoman Christine Monaghan
WeChat (one of the most popular messaging tools of China).; NetEase (download music) and Didi kuaidi (Uber service similar to taxi) are among the affected applications that are most popular in the country.
Some tools are also available violated outside China, as . the scanner to scan business cards and WeChat CamCard
In the official blog WeChat, it was reported that the security issue affects an earlier version of the application – WeChat 6.2.5 – and that new versions They were hurt.
In addition, he said an initial investigation showed that there had been no data theft or leakage of user information.
“off guard “
Apple has a security tool called Gatekeeper, designed to alert users of unauthorized programs and prevent them from running.
However, experts believe that developers should have disabled the installation, which would have allowed to create iOS apps with XcodeGhost.
The BBC technology specialist, David Lee, said that compared to the “wilderness” of applications as many thought until recently the Google store, Apple strives to strengthen security.
Lee notes that “two groups supposedly knowledgeable people were caught off guard”.
“First the developers, which security researchers say they were tricked into using a counterfeit software to build applications, and monitors quality of Apple, who generally do a very good job holding off the dangers, although in this case could not detect the threat. “
Fernando Nunez Noda, a specialist in cybersquatting, said that the attack on Apple puts the company in a position of vulnerability that had not been previously exposed .
“Normally, the whole process of development, review and deployment of Apple is very strict. Apple had always boasted of having no virus, so this situation is a psychological blow to the company, “he said Nunez told the BBC.
Nunez Noda rule out that the incident may affect the sales of Apple products , as the company “has sufficient credibility and influence among users as to not have major consequences.”
No comments:
Post a Comment