Apple's iOS is renowned for being among the most secure platforms out there, but even with the Cupertino company’s reputation for keeping things water-tight, security issues still frequently flare up. In the latest, it has been learned that a user can, without even needing to type in a password, disable the Find My iPhone feature, which essentially renders it useless since the device is then obscured from being tracked by iCloud.com. More details to follow.
It’s no hidden fact that with the amount of personal data that our smartphones today hold, privacy and identity protection is a huge concern. There have been ways around to “lock” your device for a very long time - long before iPhone and Android ever existed - but those phones didn’t really contain as much sensitive personal information as the former, not to mention that smartphones truly became popular and mainstream after these two contenders claimed the market. Hence, privacy concerns are much large scale now.
Just when you think that the whole NSA situation can't get a lot worse, somehow it blows up and somehow takes things to a new level. And now, we're hearing that the NSA can reportedly gain almost complete access to an iPhone remotely following installation of a software implant.
Samsung may have emerged as a mobile superpower in the consumer industry, but has very much struggled to corner the enterprise market. Businesses used to iPhone or BlackBerry are not switching to Samsung, and much of the reason for this can be attributed to security issues. The South Korean company has tried to put forward its case for a chunk of the enterprise pie by introducing its KNOX security platform, which is supposed to bolster Android and provide a more robust and secure environment for those in requirement of it, but unfortunately, as spotted by one security expert, it's massively flawed and leaves the famous Galaxy S4 strictly at risk.
Security and general privacy tends to be of paramount importance to most mobile device users, and with very good reason. But while the battle to steer clear of the unscrupulously-intended, non-niceties of the mobile world are well documented, one company obscures its potentially dangerous spying app under a veil of legitimacy.
It generally goes without saying that if you are using any type of medium to connect to an unknown network or public Wi-Fi then the greatest of care should be taken at all times. Not only are these types of networks extremely insecure because they’re available to the masses at popular points-of-interest, but they can also be a breeding ground for countless unseen and unnamed threats lurking in the digital darkness. A recent investigation from Skycure has shown that insecure public networks can also provide stealth access to our iOS apps to potential attackers using HTTP request hijacking methods.
iPhone 4S And Galaxy S III Exploited At Pwn2Own Contest; Photos, Contacts And Other Info Compromised
Most of us - when shopping for a new mobile device - look for features like a fast processor, decent display resolution, respectable battery life and a reasonable camera. However, two common interests shared by all smartphone and tablet users are privacy and security, since nobody want their private business invaded nor sensitive information such as banking or work to be compromised.
Regardless of what side of the fence you happen to sit on when it comes down to the old and rather tiresome Android vs. iOS debate, the fact remains that each of the mobile operating systems has definite benefits over the other. The flip side is also true that each of the firmware comes with a definitive set of issues that can, on occasions, deter users from purchasing a device that runs them. One of the oldest myths that still seems to get airtime is that iOS is security tight, but we have seen that disproven on multiple occasions. However, even though Apple still has a little work to do with iOS, the latest reports suggest that Android users are definitely at risk.
The majority of the iOS community will more than likely be familiar with the work of French iOS security researcher Pod2g. For the better part of this year, the iOS security enthusiast has been working hard on finding and exploiting various bugs in iOS that have led to the production of jailbreaks for various iOS devices. He has also been seen out in the wild at various security conferences, including the HITBSecConf and has been nominated for a Pwnie Award for his kernel exploit that was used in the Corona jailbreak.
The iPhone has been around since 2007 and is about to be presented to the world in its sixth-generation form in the next month or so. In five years that has followed the iPhone’s introduction to the world, there has been a huge rise in mobile devices and their everyday use in our day-to-day lives, with a number of important points being raised about mobile technology along the way. As you would imagine, one of those important points that gets raised time and time again is just how secure mobile devices and their respective operating systems are.
