Apple

iVirus iTrouble

September 9, 2015 — Leave a comment

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Here comes the new trouble called the KeyRaider. This is the latest virus, which prefers jailbreaked iPhones. What is even more interesting, this threat can be associated with the jailbreak solutions made in China, in the overwhelming majority of all cases. So, how does it work?

Well, as soon as your iPhone starts communicating with an iTunes and Apple Store the hackers jump in. Your iPhone will pay and do what you do not want or do not approve. So, what is the moral of our disturbing KeyRaider story? You should avoid jailbreak options for your smartphone?

Does it also mean that somewhere out of our sight the busy little bees in Apple are laughing at us? They told us, but we failed to listen and comply? No, it would not be fair to say such a thing. You are absolutely free to do whatever you like with your iPhone. You just need to be extremely careful.

Executing a jailbreak operation can be a risky operation, if you are reckless and impatient. Some hacker has obviously done his homework properly. Apple can, but still does not have an obligation to help you in this case. Do not accept a free ride of the notorious KeyRaider. That is the only advice we can give you.

iOS 8.4.1 vs TaiG Jailbreak 

August 23, 2015 — Leave a comment

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The new IOS 8.4.1 update is already here. So, what is this going to be all about? Well, the most important characteristic of this update is its anti-jailbreak feature. If you are using an iPhone, which made friends with the TaiG team, then you should be aware of this change.

Otherwise, all of your apps and everything else, which work, thanks to a jailbreak will be in trouble. So, what can you do about it? Well, you can just avoid this update, and your jailbreak will be just fine. However, there is a bigger story in the background. Can you dare to guess what it is?

For what is worth, one serious rumor has it that the IOS 8.4.1 update was a rehearsal for the main thing called IOS 9. Apparently, this latest IOS will be jailbreak-proof. This is a little bit too easy to say. Let us wait what TaiG team has to say about this tempting challenge. Can it be done?

We have no other choice, than to wait and see for ourselves. Maybe Apple just had enough of this jailbreak thing. Now, they want to end it with the new IOS. Well, good luck with that. There are quite a few jailbreak experts, who will hardly resist this challenge. Let the jailbreak games begin.

Thunderstrike Firmworm: A Mac’s Cyber Thorn

August 19, 2015 — Leave a comment

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You do not have to be an outstanding computer genius or a cyber guru to know that Mac computers are considerably safer platforms compared to Windows. However, some busy little expert bees have decided to put this claim to a test. So, what were the results of this “experiment”?

This is how the so-called Thunderstruck Firmware for Mac computers was born. Its name says it all, does not it? Its ability to hide in the firmware section, combined with the ability to be set remotely makes it to be a formidable security threat. So, what can we do about it?

You can relax, there is also another group of busy little bees at Apple, which is fixing this problem as we speak. On the other side, you should be wiser, and do your best to avoid any suspicious links. How hard could it be to follow this simple advice? Otherwise, you are going to be hit by the Thunderstrike.

There is a sad conclusion. Which one? Well, it seems that there is no safe cyber place for us. Everywhere you look there is a trouble or a threat waiting for you around the next cyber corner. Yet, if you play smart and according to the rules, you are going to decrease the chances against you, at least.

Samsung Pay Doesn’t Like The Rooted Play

July 28, 2015 — Leave a comment

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Samsung Pay was introduced almost hand-in-hand with its latest flagships Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge. However, the latest announcement has it that Samsung is not going to allow you to use this mobile payment service, if you are planning to run it on the so-called rooted devices.

Why? Is that a fair thing to do? Well, from the Samsung’s point of view, it certainly is. If you want to succeed in the cyber world, you just have to follow the money flow, as simple and as complicated as that. All eyes, ears, and especially fingers are on the mobile money.

Apple Pay is already fully operational. Google wants to improve its Wallet service even further. And, the list goes on and on. Every major IT players nowadays has its own mobile payment service. It is not a matter of prestige, but the basic business survival, under the new circumstances.

That is why, Samsung simply cannot afford itself a luxury of compromising its golden goose called Samsung Pay. What you are going to do with your rooted phone is your own thing, but you can forget about payment operations with it. Fair or not fair, Samsung has made up its mind in this situation.

iPhone 6 vs AK-74

July 20, 2015 — Leave a comment

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How many iPhones you need to stop a bullet fired from an AK-74? Well, according to the crazy and creative guys from a YouTube channel, who enjoy themselves in destroying the top smartphones, you need at least five models. If you have a soft heart for smartphones, then you should not read this post.

Believe it or not, these guys put a dozen iPhones in a line. Then, with no mercy at all, they shot through them with an AK-74. The fifth smartphone was able to stop the bullet. So, what’s is the moral of this merciless and heartless experiment? If you are going to a dangerous zone, make sure you have five iPhones with you.

Or maybe, there is one more not so obvious moral discretely attached to this story. We’re so in love with our smartphones that we tend to assign them all kinds of super-powers and special features. In most of the cases, we are easily caught in the endless loop of exaggerations.

We sure hope that these heartless brainiacs have had more than enough of fun. We don’t need any more of these heartbreaking “experiments”, do we? Who knows what more can cross their “creative” minds? Please, don’t suggest them anything crazy and painful for our dear cyber-pets. Please.

Jailbreak iOS 8.4 Is Ready

July 10, 2015 — Leave a comment

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The notorious, but extremely respectful TaiG hacker group, which specializes for the iOS jailbreak thing, was able to deliver its “solution” for the newest iOS 8.4, only a few hours after its official release. So, how are we supposed to feel about this news? We definitely not support these kinds of activities.

However, we also cannot neglect a simple fact. This group has a certain level of “hacker’s ethics”, if you accept that there is such a thing in the cyber-underground. So far, this group has not compromised its “good” name in the hacker community. Yet, they are helpless, when it comes to “repacking”.

Other hacker groups often “borrow” jailbreaks delivered by the cyber boys and girls from TaiG, but with an “addition” of a malicious nature, such as malware or a virus. Apple on the other side wants to assure us that the jailbreak trouble will not be possible with the iOS 9.

And, here we are, at the crossroads of numerous and potentially hazardous jailbreaks. What you are going to do with your iPhone? Well, it all comes down to your personal choices and even more personal consequences, you have to face with or without the TaiG hacker group.

iOSecurit9

June 15, 2015 — Leave a comment

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What is the use of the new OS, if there are no security improvements? This is a golden, and yet unwritten rule, in the mobile world. With this shiny thought in mind, what can we expect from the new iOS 9? Well, for what is worth we are going to make a few wild guesses, based on some serious rumors.

For the time being, we have a fingerprint scanner and a four-characters-code at our disposal. These 10,000 possible combinations are obviously not enough for the busy little bees in Apple. How about a million of potential combinations of a new six-character-code? This sounds like a plan.

Sometimes is good to have your reputation at stake. Why? Because, you will work really hard to create one hell of a tough system for hackers to crack. Yes, you care about your users, but at the end of the day, it all comes down to your shiny logo, which you need to protect at all costs.

OK Apple, you have certainly caught our attention. You want us to feel safe and invulnerable. Then, we have no other choice than to put your name to the rigorous tests. We will see what was this, an intriguing ad or a serious decision to set new standards in the cyber security field.

Don’t Apple Watch And Drive

June 7, 2015 — Leave a comment

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One driver had to pay a $120 ticket. What for? He was using his Apple Watch while driving. Obviously, the police does not like to see you look for a favorite song while being stuck in traffic. So, what is the moral of this story? New technologies brought us new troubles?

One of the police officers was a little bit more thoughtful in this matter. His word of advice is that we have to catch up with the new devices in terms of appropriate laws and regulations. We do not want reckless drivers on our streets. However, we also do not want to pay a huge price for our precious cyber-pets.

For the time being there is no acceptable middle ground for both parties. We are pretty much convinced that the authorities are exaggerating. On the other hand, the police officers on the field believe that the new smart devices strongly contribute to the reckless and dangerous behavior behind the wheel.

It seems that we have to come up with a new series of smart devices, which will be safe-drive-friendly. Until then, we should think twice before pressing shining buttons while driving. We do not want for smart devices put us in the dumb situations, do we? Do not Apple Watch and drive!

Make A Wish With The Sailfish

May 29, 2015 — Leave a comment

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This post’s picture says it all, doesn’t it? Here is the current situation in Russia, when it comes to the mobile OS options. Android takes up to 66%, while on the other side, iOS is somewhere between 21% and 23% of the entire Russian mobile market. What is that telling us?

Well, almost 90% of the Russian mobile paradise is in the evil American hands. That is the greatest Russian nightmare. So, what they are going to do about it? They will create a mobile OS on their own. It turns out that the open source platform called the Sailfish is going to be perfect for this purpose.

The Russians are pretty much ambitious about this one. By the end of 2025 more than 50% of the mobile OS market is supposed to be in Russian hands. Again. The users all over Russia are supposed to feel safe and protected in terms of their privacy. Right? Yet, why stop there?

There is more than one serious rumor that both Russia and China can launch their own Internet networks completely independent from the World Wide Web. If they want to. At any given moment. Yet, do we really need that? Each country should have its Net and mobile OS. Seriously?

The United Colors Of Apple

April 19, 2015 — Leave a comment

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Even the IT giants, such as Apple itself, can make ridiculous, unreasonable, and very often damaging mistakes. Emoticons for the different races of Apple users. This sounds like a nice idea in theory. However, when you try to implement it in the real life, then you hit a wall with a surprising strength.

What were they thinking? You are desperately trying to enter the Asian market with the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, and at the same time you are using yellow emoticons for the users with the Asian origin. This is impossible to comment properly. What happened to the universal values?

You can rest assured that these race-out-of-the-place emoticons are going to be used by the extremely short and unpleasant expiration date. At the same time, we still have this funny and awkward feeling that this was a bad prank. You can do us a huge favor by checking what is happening right now.

Either way the book about the biggest mistakes in the IT marketing just got itself an additional invaluable chapter. We sure hope that the other major IT league players have figured out what is the moral of this story. We sure hope that the iPhones will not change their colors in accordance with your race.