Apple on Omid Farhang

iPhone Notifications to Google Glass

Mon, 24 Jun 2013 20:13:57 +0000

Google has already released a MyGlass Companion app for Android via the Play Store, and although a corresponding iOS version has yet to manifest itself in the App Store, the company has already noted that iPhone users will not be neglected when it comes to the early 2014 public launch of Google Glass. In the meantime, the PostOffice tweak will work just fine for those with a jail-broken iPhone, and although there’s not much to it aside from one or two settings, it does what it purports to do in pushing notifications through Glass. The free tweak is available via the BigBoss repository in Cydia, To configure the way your notifications are re-routed to Glass you navigate to your native Settings and configure the way your notifications are re-routed. Google Glass currently may only be in the hands of creative individuals, some competition winners and a handful of developers, but that has not prevented the tech world from getting itself excited about the internet giant’s technological headgear. Last month, one such creative individual, Adam Bell, had managed to route iOS notifications through to Google Glass using some kit he has thrown together, and now a tweak has emerged offering a simpler way for such a process to be achieved.

Apple closes QuickTime vulnerabilities on Windows

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:01:51 +0000

Apple has released a security update for its QuickTime media framework for Windows. Version 7.7.4 of the software closes 12 critical security holes causing memory corruption and buffer overflows when processing a number of media formats. The vulnerabilities affect Windows 7, Vista and XP SP2 or later and could be exploited to cause arbitrary code execution and application crashes.

The vulnerabilities affected the playback of MP3, H.263, H.264, TeXML, JPEG, QTIF, Sorenson Video and FPX files as well as the handling of dref, enof and mvhd atoms within the program. All of the problems were reported by researchers working with HP’s Zero Day Initiative, five of them by Tom Gallagher and Paul Bates from Microsoft.

Apple adds two-step verification option for Apple IDs

Sat, 23 Mar 2013 14:13:00 +0000

A new security option gives Apple’s customers a way to secure their Apple ID password using their phone.

Cross-posted from Cnet:

Apple today added an extra layer of security to its Apple ID system that can harden the password people use to log in to various Apple services.

Users with an Apple ID can now sign up for two-step verification of their password, a system that sends a four-digit passcode by text message to a user’s phone, and must be used on top of a regular password. In practice, this could keep an account from being compromised by an attacker, unless that person had access to the mobile device too.

Dropbox Makes PDF Viewing Less Painful, Adds Push Notifications For Shared Folders

Sat, 16 Feb 2013 13:11:00 +0000

Just a few days after adding a new set of features to Dropbox for Teams, the cloud storage company rolled out a new version of its iOS application which introduces a few useful additions as well. For starters, it has added an improved PDF viewer, which lets you navigate to any page in the document by tapping on the thumbnail. It’s rather awesome, in fact. The update also introduces push notifications for folders shared with you – a feature that’s now available on Android, too.

1 million Apple Device IDs leaked, claim hackers

Tue, 04 Sep 2012 13:02:00 +0000

According to the AntiSec hacker group, they claim to hold more than 12 million Apple iOS Unique Device IDs, in addition to other personal information from device owners. As a move to back up such a claim, the AntiSec hacker group is said to have released slightly more than a million Apple Device IDs to the masses. This particular expose was unveiled on Pastebin, which is said to hold a detailed description of the method that the hacking group were said to have obtained the IDs from the FBI.

Not so secure: Text messaging on iPhone can be hacked

Sun, 19 Aug 2012 14:07:00 +0000

FirstPost: A hacker Friday revealed a security flaw that he claimed could make Apple’s iPhone particularly vulnerable to text message cheating.

The flaw has existed since iPhone was first launched in 2007, and is still not solved in the beta version of iOS 6, the next operating system for iPhone, the hacker under the name “Pod2g” said in a blog post, reported Xinhua.

QuickTime for Windows update plugs security holes

Thu, 17 May 2012 15:21:00 +0000

The H-Online: Version 7.7.2 of QuickTime for Windows has been released to address a total of 17 security vulnerabilities in the media player. According to Apple, these include integer, stack and buffer overflows, as well as memory corruption issues, all of which could be could exploited by an attacker to crash the application or execute arbitrary code on a victim’s system. For an attack to be successful, a user must first open a malicious web site or a specially crafted file.

Kaspersky: Mac security is '10 years behind Microsoft'

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 07:08:00 +0000

Cnet: Forrester’s CEO isn’t the only one spouting doom and gloom for Apple today.

Now Eugene Kaspersky, the CEO of security firm Kaspersky Lab, says Apple is headed for a rough patch. However, this one’s in the world of computer security, and he says Apple is already getting into the thick of it.

Speaking to Computer Business Review at Info Security 2012 show in London this week, Kaspersky said that when it comes to computer security, Apple’s Mac platform was a decade behind Microsoft‘s, and that it’s got some things to learn from its rival.

Apple releases Java update with Flashback removal tool

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 12:18:00 +0000

The H-Online: As expected, Apple has released an updated version of the Java implementation for its Mac OS X operating system that includes a removal tool for the Flashback trojan. According to the company, the update, labelled “Java for OS X 2012-003“, finds and removes the “most common variants” of the malware which had infected approximately 600,000 systems using flaws in the previous version of Java.

Additionally, the new Java update for Mac OS X 10.7 Lion prevents Java applets from being automatically executed by disabling the Java web plugin by default. Users can re-enable the automatic execution of Java applets via the Java Preferences application (Applications ➤ Utilities ➤ Java Preferences). However, if the plugin detects that Java applets have not been run for “an extended period of time”, it will automatically disable applet support again.

Russian AV company claims 600,000 Macs infected by Flashback [Removal Manual]

Fri, 06 Apr 2012 20:39:00 +0000

The H-Online: A Russian AV company, Dr. Web, says it has conducted research to determine the spread of the Flashback trojan on systems running Mac OS X and says that 550,000 systems are infected, mostly in the US and Canada. A later update raised that number to 600,000 and claimed 274 infected systems in Cupertino, California.

Dr. Web says it employed a sinkhole technique to intercept the bot installed by the newest Flashback trojan, and directed the bots to its own servers where it could analyse the traffic. Each bot includes a unique ID of the machine it has infected in the query string it sends to the command and control server; it is these unique IDs that Dr. Web has used to calculate the infection count. According to its estimates, of the original 550,000 estimate, 56.6% of the systems were in the United States, 19.8% in Canada, 12.8% in the United Kingdom and 6.1% in Australia.

Report: iOS vulnerability sold for $250,000

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 21:42:00 +0000

The H-Security: Business appears to be booming for those who trade in unpatched (zero-day) security holes: according to a report by Forbes magazine, a US company that works for the US government recently paid $250,000 for a vulnerability in Apple’s iOS operating system.

The report says that the deal was arranged by a hacker who goes by the name of “the Grugq” and who has brokered agreements between those who discover vulnerabilities and government agencies over the last year. If negotiations are successful, the hacker retains a 15 per cent commission; he’s reportedly on track to earn about a million US dollars this year with his brokerage business.

Apple's new iPad is great, but it's not free, nor called iPad 3

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 08:37:00 +0000

SophosLabs: Only hours after the launch of Apple’s newest iPad we are beginning to see spammers trying to use the excitement over its release to ensnare innocent people into their scams.

The scammers are sending out emails with the subject “Where do we send your Free iPad 3, just Test & Keep! See details”. The email contains an image with the text “TEST & KEEP an iPad 3 FREE – Click here”.

Safari update closes security holes

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 14:01:00 +0000

Apple has released version 5.1.4 of its Safari web browser for Windows and Mac OS X. According to the company, the maintenance and security update addresses more than 80 vulnerabilities. The update also includes includes various stability and performance improvements as well as fixes for other non-security related bugs.

A majority of the security holes closed in 5.1.4 were found in the WebKit browser engine used by Safari. These include several cross-site scripting (XSS), cross-origin and HTTP authentication problems, as well as numerous memory corruption bugs that could be exploited by an attacker, for example, to cause unexpected application termination or arbitrary code execution.

Opfake scam targets iPhone users

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 21:42:00 +0000

Symantec Connect:

The Opfake gang has been targeting Android mobile devices, as well as Symbian, but that does not mean they are limiting their targets to these platforms. Where there is money to be made, they are willing to invest time and resources. This includes scams designed for iPhone users. We have come across a couple of Opfake websites that, while hosting malicious apps that Symantec detects as Android.Opfake, are also designed to perform social engineering attacks on iPhone users.

Free iPad 3? It doesn't exist! Beware of scams

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 07:41:00 +0000

It is widely anticipated that Apple will announce a new version of its iPad tablet computer in San Francisco on March 7th.

An invitation sent to journalists, inviting them to an event organized by Apple, has fueled speculation even further as it appears to show a close-up of someone using an iPad.

Could it be the new iPad with a much lusted for improved display and souped-up processor? Only time will tell..

Google found evading Safari's privacy controls

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 17:31:00 +0000

The H-Online: Google and other advertising companies have been found to be deliberately evading the privacy controls of Apple’s Safari browser. The evasion was revealed in a report in the Wall Street Journal and was based on work by Stanford researcher Jonathan Mayer. He found that the “+1” button code added to DoubleClick advertisements also allowed a Google DoubleClick tracking code to be installed on desktop Safari on 22 of the top 100 web sites. The same happened with 23 of those 100 sites when using Safari on the iPhone.

Apple previews OS X 10.8 with Gatekeeper

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:45:00 +0000

The H-Online: A developer preview of Mac OS X 10.8 is now available to registered Mac developers after Apple announced the new version, named Mountain Lion, and previewed a number of its features. Among those features is Gatekeeper which Apple says “helps prevent you from unknowingly downloading and installing malicious software”.

The Gatekeeper feature has three levels of security for running applications downloaded from the Internet; “Mac App Store”, “Mac App Store and identified developers” and “Anywhere”. The first setting only runs applications downloaded from the Mac App Store, in a style similar to the iPhone only running apps from the App Store. Unlike the iPhone though, Gatekeeper lets users allow applications from other sources. The “Mac App Store and Identified Developers” option only allows applications from the store and from developers who have signed their program with an Apple-issued Developer ID, while “Anywhere” allows any program to be downloaded and run. It is unclear how Gatekeeper interacts with software loaded from other media, such as a USB memory stick or CD/DVD.

iPhone 5 tester SMS text scam hits cellphone users

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 17:23:00 +0000

SophosLabs: Scammers don’t just lure you into visiting their websites via email, Facebook and Twitter – you can be targeted on your mobile phone too.

For instance, there have been numerous people on the internet who have reported receiving messages like the following:

Apple needs iPhone5 testers! The first 1000 users who visit [LINK] and enter code 4444 will get to test & keep the new iPhone5.

Of course, the promotion has nothing to do with Apple (who do not do public tests of their upcoming products), and – as the iPhone 5 hasn’t even been announced yet – you have close to zero chance of receiving a free smartphone.

Apple releases Mac OS X 10.7.3

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:18:00 +0000

The H-Security: Apple has released Mac OS X 10.7.3 and, for Mac OS X 10.6.8 Snow Leopard users who have yet to upgrade to Lion, Security Update 2012-001; these maintenance and security updates addresses a number of vulnerabilities in the company’s desktop and server operating systems. According to Apple, the updates close more than 50 holes, many of which could be exploited by an attacker to, for example, remotely execute arbitrary code on a victim’s system, gain access to private information or cause a denial-of-service (DoS).

Mac OS X Trojan hides behind malicious PDF disguise

Sun, 25 Sep 2011 20:59:00 +0000

SophosLabs: A fascinating new example of Mac malware has been discovered, that appears to be adopting an old Windows-style disguise to fool users into running it.

Despite the numerous times that cybercriminals have created boobytrapped PDF files that exploit vulnerabilities to infect unsuspecting users, many people still think that PDF files are somehow magically safer to open than conventional programs.

The OSX/Revir-B Trojan plays on this by posing as a PDF file.