14 DAY TRIAL // The iPhone has revealed yet another vulnerability in its system, as it can be hacked through Web. This vulnerability is only theoretical at this time, as there are no reports of people actually using this possibility to break into an iPhone.
The flaw concerns not only the iPhone, but also Apple computers in general, as it uses the Safari web browser, although not that working on Windows systems too. The technique involves sending a large number of random or bad formatted data to a device in order to cause crashes or problems which allow sending code or taking over control of the device.
This new information on how the iPhone can be hacked implies the same danger as that of having your personal computer hijacked. 8GB is a huge amount of storage space and it would actually be a shame not to take advantage of it. All important data which is stored on the handset is now endangered by this possibility of having it hacked.
After being hijacked, the iPhones can be used for sending cell-phone spam through text messages. Moreover, personal phone numbers and text messages would be accessible. Mobile phone viruses are known to take effect on the user's bill, by sending messages to specific numbers which charge for an extra tax.
"The security of the iPhone is not as good as the security of the Mac desktop, and I think that's something they need to work on", said harlie Miller, principal security analyst at Independent Security Evaluators, which discovered the flaw.
Researchers at the Baltimore-based ISE haven't released details on the vulnerability, but have provided Apple with information as well as a patch and software update for removing the problem. On the 2nd of August, they will also present the details of this situation at the Black Hat USA hacker conference in Las Vegas and online. They rely on the fact that Apple will have enough time for releasing a patch until then and that iPhone users will not be put at any risk.