Apple fans besieged by iPhone Trojan and iTunes attack

iExploits

By John Leyden • Get more from this author

Posted in Mobile, 19th September 2008 10:39 GMT

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Apple fans are under attack on multiple fronts.

Security researchers have discovered an unpatched vulnerability in Apple's iTunes and QuickTime software that creates an opportunity to crash browser applications. The flaw might also open up a route to inject hostile code onto vulnerable systems, though this remains unproven.

Exploitation of the flaw in either case involves tricking surfers into opening a maliciously constructed QuickTime tag contained on a web page or embedded in an MP3 and video clip file. Security clearing house US CERT rates the buffer overflow-based flaw - which affects Apple QuickTime 7.5.5 and iTunes 8.0 - as a high risk bug.

Apple posted an update for QuickTime addressing earlier bugs only last week. The consumer electronic giant is yet to respond to the latest security flap involving its iTunes software, following the publication of an alert by US CERT on Thursday.

In other Apple-related security news, miscreants have disguised a Windows Trojan as a game for the Apple iPhone. The malware appears as an attachment in spam emails doing the rounds that appear with subject lines such as "Virtual iPhone games!" and "Apple: The most popular game!". Windows users credulous enough to open the infected attachment 'Penguin.Panic.zip' will end up loading the Agent-HNY Trojan onto their systems.

The malware has no effect when opened on either a Mac or Jesus Phone, as explained in a write-up of the attack of a Sophos security blog here. ®

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