BOSTON (Reuters) - Apple Inc released 45 software patches on Wednesday to address rare security vulnerabilities in its popular iPhone and iPod Touch mobile devices.
The company released them as part of its widely anticipated iPhone 3.0 operating system.
"This is a large cluster of patches for the iPhone," said Dino Dai Zovi, a security expert who is writing a book on cracking the iPhone.
Apple has a stellar reputation when it comes to securing its devices. While it is unusual for the company to issue so many patches at once, analysts have yet to uncover any malicious software targeting the iPhone since Apple got into the mobile phone market two years ago. Wall Street analysts said they were not alarmed by the news.
Such vulnerabilities are not unique to Apple. Technology companies constantly battle to stay ahead of increasingly sophisticated hackers. Every time a security flaw is identified, there is potential for hackers to exploit it.
Apple rival Research in Motion Ltd recently issued a security patch for its popular BlackBerry, addressing a glitch that had potential to let hackers use the device to break into corporate computer networks."Given the breadth of feature and functionality within the iPhone OS, it is not surprising that Apple would have security patches," said Cross Research analyst Shannon Cross.
Hackers have traditionally focused most of their time on writing programs that attack PCs running Microsoft Corp's Windows operating system because it sits on more than 90 percent of the world's personal computers.
Analysts expect that to change because sales of mobile devices are soaring as the PC industry slumps. Apple's iPhones and iPods are dominant players in the rapidly growing sector.
"They are no longer dumb devices used only to make phone calls. They hold a wealth of personal information and in some cases are being used as electronic wallets," said Joris Evers, a spokesman for No. 2 security software maker McAfee Inc.
The Enemy at the Gate
With phones becoming so technical throughout the world the reality of a major virus attacking our mobile communication devices is getting closer and closer. Some minor attacks have already occurred, but the viruses have been too isolated and unable to cross the many different phone types.
The first known mobile or cell phone virus appeared in 2004 but crashed and burned fast. Cabir infected a number of Bluetooth-enabled phones and was the result of a group of malware developers creating Cabir just to prove it could be done.
Next was the slightly more aggressive Commwarrior- The first mobile phone virus capable searching through a phone and sending a copy of itself to uninfected phones of your contacts.
However, it is only a matter of time before a mass infection, as it’s probably been for lack of people wanting to try to create a large-scale virus that has prevented such a release. Of the viruses that are out there, most attack phones of the Symbian Series 60 breed like the Nokia 6620.
Scanning the many internet pages for freelance coders out there and it’s easy to see that people are requesting exploitable code for phones.
Authorities in Australia, together with the CSIRO, are trying to develop a virus for use in cases of stolen phones. The concept is simple; when a phone is reported stolen a text message containing the virus is sent to the phone by the police which renders it useless.
Some Words on Protecting Your Phone
When you think about the information that goes into a mobile phone or cell phone, it’s easy to see why they would be such a target for scammers. Identity theft perpetrators have everything they need in a lost phone so a misplaced mobile device should be given high priority by its owner.
Viruses can already be modified to enable people to listen in on conversations and monitor calls. As cell phones advance, so too does the information they carry. And information is gold.
ZDNET Article : Mobile Phone Viruses Infecting Car Onboard Computers
As seen in the motion picture 'Untraceable'.
Antivirus companies are researching reports that computer viruses have attacked the onboard computers of cars.
Moscow-based Kaspersky Labs was asked last weekend how to disinfect the onboard computers of several Lexus models: LX470, LS430 and Landcruiser 100. The security company was told that the infection likely occurred via a mobile phone.
Some mobile-phone viruses already exist, such as Cabir and Skulls, which spread by Bluetooth and infect handsets based on the Symbian operating system. Many Lexus cars include a navigation system that can connect to a mobile phone over Bluetooth to allow hands-free calls, and Kaspersky believes that Bluetooth could be used to transmit a virus to a car's GPS navigation system...
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