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Originally Posted by jswinden
And don't get me started on all the Android apps which do nasty things that eat your battery and compromise your cyber security. This is where Apple's closed system is actually helpful as Apple will reject apps that try to do these nasty things.
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Hey folks, if you’re on iOS, don’t rest too easy. Here are examples of real-life, in-the-wild attacks on iOS users, not just proof-of-concept stuff:
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Apple has been known in the mobile and PC world for its resistance to viruses. However, the iOS App Store has just been infected with its first case of malware, causing newly updated apps to crash upon opening.
A Russian-language app called Find and Call, which was available in both the Apple App Store and Google Play, has been discovered to be the cause of the bug, Wired reported. Kasperksy antivirus experts were responsible for finding the culprit, which is essentially a Trojan that steals and uploads the user's address book to a remote server.
After the data is uploaded, the server spends spam to the email addresses and phone numbers belonging to the victim's contacts, advertising the Find and Call application. The app also steals the GPS coordinates of the victim's phone and uploads them to the server.
Russian iOS users are the only ones known to have been affected by the malware, but the app was open and available for anyone to download.
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Smooth Blog, among many others, is reporting that a virus has been infecting iPhone users around the globe…
The so-called virus effects iOS devices, including iPads, iPhones, and iPod touches. Apparently, users browsing for information on ‘jailbreak‘ and ‘unlocking‘ from their iOS devices are the ones most likely to get infected. The virus itself is nestled behind a false ad that claims to unlock your iDevice for free.
Users are reporting that the advertisement leads to a web page that shows a 10-15 second animation, followed by the text: “DOWNLOAD UNLOCK 2 NOW FREE.” Afterwards, the infected users report that their iDevices were completely wiped of information, even data on their SIM cards.
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It's no secret that iOS is a much safer mobile platform than Android or Windows mobile, but in recent months the cracks in Apple's usually tightly run ship have been showing. The most recent issue? A worm embedded in an Instagram add-on app that targets Windows users who manage their iPhone's content through iTunes.
CNet reports that two worms are hiding in the Instaquotes Quotes Cards for Instagram app, and take advantage of Windows-specific infrastructure to distribute malware. One of the probable reasons why this malware wasn't flagged immediately by the Apple security team is that it doesn't actually do any damage to the iOS environment and is virtually undetectable on a non-windows device or computer. However, the fact is that there are plenty of users who use a Windows computer regularly to access their mobile content, and for those users, this new threat could be devastating if not dealt with.
This latest worm is yet another example of how even the most secure platform cannot be considered "invulnerable" to malicious attacks. No matter how many steps an OS might take to strengthen its inherent security, there are always ways for viruses, worms, and trojans to take advantage of even the smallest exploitable code.
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The moral of the stories is technology today poses risks to users’ safety and privacy no matter what platform you use. Viruses and trojans are equal opportunity attackers. Act accordingly and take precautions whenever you can.
--Pat