Tag Archive for: iPhone’s

Apple warns of security flaw that lets hackers into iPhones, iPads and Macs

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SAN FRANCISCO: Apple is warning of a flaw that is allowing hackers to seize control of iPhones, iPads and Mac computers, and is urging users to install emergency software updates.

Patches were released on Wednesday (Aug 17) and Thursday by the tech titan to fix what it described as a vulnerability hackers already knew about and may be taking advantage of.

“Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited,” the Silicon Valley-based company said.

Apple did not disclose whether it had information regarding the extent to which the issue has been exploited.

It released two security reports about the issue on Wednesday, although they did not receive wide attention outside of tech publications. 

The technical description indicated that a hacker could use the flaw to take control of devices, accessing any of its data or capabilities.

That would allow intruders to impersonate the device’s owner and subsequently run any software in their name, said Rachel Tobac, CEO of SocialProof Security.

Patches were released for iPhones, iPads and Mac computers running on operating systems with the vulnerability.

Security experts have advised users to update affected devices — the iPhone 6S and later models; several models of the iPad, including the 5th generation and later, all iPad Pro models and the iPad Air 2; and Mac computers running MacOS Monterey. The flaw also affects some iPod models.

Apple did not say in the reports how, where or by whom the vulnerabilities were discovered. In all cases, it cited an anonymous researcher.

Commercial spyware companies such as Israel’s NSO Group are known for identifying and taking advantage of such flaws, exploiting them in malware that surreptitiously infects targets’ smartphones, siphons their contents and surveils the targets in real time.

NSO Group has been blacklisted by the US Commerce Department. Its spyware is known to have been used in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America against journalists, dissidents and human rights activists.

Security researcher Will Strafach said he had seen no technical analysis of the vulnerabilities that Apple has just patched.

The company has previously…

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Opera launches new Web3 fueled crypto browser for iPhones and iPads

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Opera, the popular internet browser has announced Web3 fueled crypto browser for iOS devices—mainly iPhones and iPads. This comes months after the company first unveiled the browser for Windows, Mac and Android.

The crypto browser allows users to use decentralized apps (dapps), games and metaverse platforms—and has an integrated non-custodial Crypto Wallet. With a non-custodial wallet, only you have sole control of your private keys, there is no third party involved or who has access to the wallet.

Non-custodial crypto wallet supports Ethereum, Polygon, and Celo blockchain ecosystems, the company says “more blockchain integration on the way.” This wallet will allow users to buy cryptocurrency with fiat, send, or even receive cryptocurrency as well as NFTs.

Opera’s crypto browser also comes with direct access to decentralized exchanges – including over 7,000 Polygon (Blockchain)-based services.

“The interest in Web3 is continuing to grow. The Opera Crypto Browser Project was built to simplify the Web3 user experience that has often been bewildering for mainstream users. Opera believes Web3 has to be easy to use in order to reach its full potential and a mass adoption,”said Jorgen Arnesen, EVP Mobile at Opera.

Among its features is a news and data aggregator called Crypto Corner, a dedicated start page with live crypto information and updates, crypto asset prices and gas fees, as well as crypto events, airdrops, and even podcasts. This feature aims to brings together all the information you need to both learn about, and stay up to date on, the world of crypto.

Earlier, Opera said its users will enojoy no-log browser VPN, native ad-blocker and tracker blocker, but with the added access to Web3 websites and dApps – directly from the browser’s address bar.

“The Crypto Browser is dedicated to further improving security on Web3 with features like a native ad and tracker blocker, pop-up blocker, and an intuitive Cookie Dialogue Blocker. Also included is cryptocurrency mining protection, blocking any cryptojacking scripts that could compromise iOS devices (and decrease their performance),” the company added in its blog…

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Are iPhones more secure than Android phones?

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Staying safe in a digital world can be difficult. It can be hard to understand how to avoid phishing scams, or if WhatsApp is a safer choice than Signal or Telegram. And it turns out the choice of phone you have can impact how safe you are, with Android and Apple handsets both being susceptible to hacking, if not to varying degrees.

That’s why we asked around the stratosphere to find out what leading security experts think, and what you should watch out for so you can keep your phone out of harm’s way.

Are iPhones more secure than Android phones?

Chris Hauk, consumer privacy champion at Pixel Privacy, told Trusted Reviews that Android phones are targeted more often than iPhones as there are more of them in the wild, making them a bigger target.

“Android handsets are usually targeted more than iPhones, due to their larger installation numbers, so targeting Android devices offers a larger attack surface,” Hauk says.

“iPhones are also not as susceptible to attacks as Android devices, as Apple controls both the devices and the operating system. Meanwhile, Android is adapted by numerous smartphone makers, which usually customize the mobile operating system for the devices they sell, introducing possible security flaws by installing their third-party software.”

That doesn’t mean that iPhones are immune to attacks or vulnerabilities. Recently Apple just patched up two significant security holes that could have allowed third-party apps to see your private Apple ID. In a similar vein, a Safari 15 bug was discovered that could disclose your recent browsing history from the app, showing that Apple is not invincible, even if it is less common to see it struggling with big security vulnerabilities.

Security advisor at F-Secure, Fennel Aurora, explained to Trusted Reviews how Android is more targeted, even though iPhone malware is more valuable, as it requires more complicated tricks to get into the iOS system.

“In general iOS and Mac users are more valuable targets and can be more profitable if the crime company is able to put in the…

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Pegasus hack reported on iPhones of Human Rights Watch official

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Human Rights Watch official Lama Fakih was at a meeting in Beirut, where she lives and works, when a strange message appeared on her iPhone on Nov. 24: “ALERT,” it said. “State-sponsored attackers may …

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