iPhone Security Alert: Update Now or Get Hacked

On Aug. 25, security experts discovered “in-the-wild” malware that, with one click, could allow hackers to see everything on an iPhone, including contacts, pix, communications, passwords, #wateva. The malware, once installed, also can access (and record activity on) apps including Gmail, Facebook, Skype, WhatsApp, Viber, FaceTime, Calendar, Line, Mail.Ru, WeChat, SS and Tango, among others.

That’s bad, so Apple quickly sent an update for iOS 9.3.5 and said users with iOS 10 also will be protected with the patch. Apple and experts urge iPhone users to update their phones immediately.

Hackers install malware on unsuspecting users’ iPhones with a text that may appear to come from a trusted source containing a link. Once you click the link, the program exploits three vulnerabilities in iOS security and essentially “jailbreaks” your phone. The malware sucks onto the iOS like a zombie octopus, and next thing you know, a GIF of your jiggling breasts is trending on 4Chan.

According to media reports from the BBC and tech blogs, the evil plot was revealed when human rights attorney and tech-savvy smart guy Ahmed Mansoor received a suspicious text with a link in it. Instead of clicking, he turned the text over to watchdog group Citizens Lab and cybersecurity company Lookout.com, whose experts tracked down the “sophisticated, persistent” spyware program.

The malware has been traced to a program called Pegasus, developed by a little-known Israeli-based organization called the NSO Group that reportedly specializes in “cyber war.”

Lookout.com’s blog said, “We believe that this spyware has been in the wild for a significant amount of time based on some of the indicators within the code (e.g., a kernel mapping table that has values all the way back to iOS 7). It is also being used to attack high-value targets for multiple purposes, including high-level corporate espionage on iOS, Android, and Blackberry.”

Install the update! Otherwise, your privacy is history.