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+ - 274 Unauthorized iPhone Apps Leak Private Data Less Than Approved Ones-> 0

Submitted by Sparrowvsrevolution on Tuesday February 14, @02:34PM

Sparrowvsrevolution writes "In the wake of news that the iPhone app Path uploads users’ entire contact lists without permission, Forbes dug up a study from a group of researchers at the University of California at Santa Barbara and the International Security Systems Lab that aimed to analyze how and where iPhone apps transmit users’ private data. Not only did the researchers find that one in five of the free apps in Apple’s app store upload private data back to the apps’ creators that could potentially identify users and allow profiles to be built of their activities. They also discovered that programs in Cydia, the most popular platform for unauthorized apps that run only on “jailbroken” iPhones, tend to leak private data far less frequently than Apple’s approved apps.

The researchers ran their analysis on 1,407 free apps in the App Store and in Cydia, the unofficial app market for jailbroken phones. Of those tested apps, 21 percent of official App Store apps uploaded the user’s Unique Device Identifier, for instance, compared with only four percent of unauthorized apps."
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+ - 193 AT&T declares war on unlimited data users-> 0

Submitted by zacharye on Tuesday February 14, @09:04AM

zacharye writes "AT&T’s stance on unlimited data is once again in the spotlight as a new wave of smartphone users cry foul over the carrier’s questionable policies. The nation’s No.2 carrier does not currently offer an unlimited data plan to its smartphone subscribers. Instead, there are three available data plans that include “soft” caps, allowing subscribers to continue using data services for additional fees after the soft cap is reached in a billing period. Users who have been with AT&T since before the carrier switched to tiered data plans — loyal customers who have in some cases maintained the same account in good standing for more than a decade — had the option to retain their unlimited data plans when AT&T first made the move to tiered plans. While heavy users were initially relieved when the opportunity to retain their old unlimited plans presented itself, that relief has quickly turned to disdain..."
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+ - 151 Ask Slashdot: How to validate Sys Admin Knowledge? 0

Submitted by protohacker on Tuesday February 14, @08:31AM

+ - 227 Apple launches new legal attack on Samsung-> 1

Submitted by

walterbyrd

on Sunday February 12, @09:07PM

walterbyrd writes "Apple Inc has asked a federal court in California to block Samsung Electronics Co Ltd from selling its new Galaxy Nexus smartphones, alleging patent violations. In a suit filed last week in San Jose, Apple said the Galaxy Nexus infringes on patents underlying features customers expect from its products. Those include the ability to unlock phones by sliding an image and to search for information by voice."
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+ - 272 A share of Apple stock now costs more than an iPad-> 0

Submitted by zacharye on Monday February 13, @09:32AM

zacharye writes "The “Apple is worth more than” meme has gotten plenty of play over the past year, but a new measure of Apple’s success emerged on Monday that is as simple as it is monumental: a single share of Apple stock now costs more than an iPad. As of the open of the market on Monday, Apple’s stock rose just above $499 — the entry-level price of Apple’s iPad 2 — undoubtedly on its way to $500 and beyond..."
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+ - 169 Southwest Airlines iPhone app vulnerable to hackers 0

Submitted by

davidstites

on Sunday February 12, @10:13AM

davidstites writes "I am a masters computer science student at University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and in November I performed a security audit of 230+ popular iOS applications because I wanted to know how secure apps on smartphones and tablets really are.

I made a shocking discovery. The largest single potential security breach was with the Southwest Airlines application. Southwest Airlines’ iPhone app leaves a user’s information vulnerable to hackers. When you login to the application on your phone using your Rapid Rewards account, the app submits your username and password information as plain-text (unencrypted) to a Southwest remote server (mobile.southwest.com). A potential attacker can simply sniff for the data on the network and steal it. This situation is a hackers dream!

If a victims credentials were captured, a hacker could use those credentials to login to that particular account and they would have access to anything the victim would have access to, such as addresses, birthdays, e-mail, phone and credit cards. They could even book a flight in the victims name. This not only obviously worrisome from the standpoint of a potential attacker fraudulently using a victims account and credit card information, but also due to the possibility of terrorist threats in air travel. At the very least, this discovery uncovers the potential for identity theft and at the very worst, it is a complete breakdown in national air travel security.

The possibility of being able to capture this data is especially probable since Denver International offers free WiFi and it is an unencrypted network. The probability that a Southwest passenger would login to their account is also quite high since they have an entire terminal to themselves (C concourse). However, this could occur on any unencrypted or encrypted network.

Consider the possibility of a person who is currently (and rightfully) on the Department of Homeland Security’s “No-Fly” list. If this person were able to capture a victim’s credentials and create a fake ID, he could pass through TSA security without being stopped.

I don't know how Southwest Airlines let this happen, but sometimes companies have to decide between security and the bottom line. Companies rush to get products out, the engineering dollars are not there to complete the project, so security falls to the back. Usually, security is not thought of as a benefit, until it fails.

I contacted Southwest when the vulnerability was found in early December and they still have not released a patch as of today and they have never contacted me back about the vulnerability. Until the security flaw is fixed, the best solution is to not use the application.

A full list of applications with vulnerabilities can be found at http://blog.afewguyscoding.com/2011/12/survey-mobile-device-security-threats-vulnerabilities-defenses/.

Additionally, some local NBC (http://www.koaa.com/news/uccs-student-points-out-phone-security-concerns/) and ABC (http://www.krdo.com/news/30422585/detail.html) news stations and the Denver Post covered this story (http://blogs.denverpost.com/techknowbytes/2012/02/09/southwest-airlines-iphone-app-vulnerable-to-hackers-study-says/3264/)."

+ - 179 Hackers Hit Apple Supplier Foxconn-> 0

Submitted by wiredmikey on Thursday February 09, @03:01PM

wiredmikey writes "Protests against Apple and Foxconn due to furor over reports about working conditions have gone digital.

A group known as SwaggSec has successfully hacked computers at Foxconn, and posted the stolen data to The Pirate Bay website.

News of the hack comes as protesters paid a visit today to Apple stores around the world to deliver petitions demanding the improvement of working conditions at factories run by Apple suppliers in China and other countries.

In response to the attack, Foxconn reportedly took down a website that explains the services it offers to some of its partners, including Apple, Cisco and Acer."
Link to Original Source

+ - 192 FBI File Notes Steve Jobs' Reality Distortion Field 1

Submitted by

Hugh Pickens writes

on Thursday February 09, @11:40AM

Hugh Pickens writes writes "Bloomberg reports that the FBI has released a decades-old file it kept on Steve Jobs, the deceased Apple co-founder, after a background check for a possible appointment by former President George H. W. Bush conducting interviews with unnamed associates of Jobs to judge his character, drug use and potential prejudices. “Several individuals questioned Mr. Jobs’ honesty stating that Mr. Jobs will twist the truth and distort reality in order to achieve his goals,” according to the materials. Several people commented “concerning past drug use on the part of Mr. Jobs,” according to the file including marijuana, hashish and LSD during the period 1970 — 1974. The file also noted that Jobs was not a member of the communist party."

+ - 176 Labor activist: Apple may be terrible, bit all others are worse-> 0

Submitted by CheerfulMacFanboy on Tuesday February 07, @08:50AM

CheerfulMacFanboy writes "Labor Activist Li Qiang wants you to know that the iPhone 4 in his pocket is not an endorsement of Apple’s policies, just an acknowledgement that the company is doing a better job of monitoring factory conditions than its peers. The founder of leading advocacy group China Labor Watch (CLW) told us that, though the Cupertino company does more-thorough inspections than competitors, it is responsible for poor working conditions at its suppliers’ factories and needs to invest some of its record-breaking profits in improving them.

“Although I know that the iPhone 4 is made at sweat shop factories in China, I still think that this is the only choice, because Apple is actually one of the best. Actually before I made a decision, I compared Apple with other cell phone companies, such as Nokia,” he said through a translator. “And the conditions in those factories are worse than the ones of Apple."
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+ - 154 Carriers hate the iPhone-> 0

Submitted by zacharye on Wednesday February 08, @09:55AM