There may be some bad news for iPhone and iPad users as Palo Alto Networks have discovered a malware called ‘WireLurker’ that is infecting iPhones and iPads. The malware seems to be restricted to Chinese users for now, but the threat to others is imminent. According to Palo Alto, the people affected by this malware are mainly from China so it is likely that the attackers are also Chinese.
The malware is seeded in several apps that people download from a third party app store called ‘Miyadi’. There are about 467 applications on ‘Miyadi’ that are affected by this malware and this includes popular apps like ‘The Sims 3’, ‘International Snooker 2012’ and ‘Pro Evolution Soccer 2014’.
The malware is known to collect data like call logs and phone book contacts. However, experts fear that WireLurker may be more dangerous as it might be able to access Apple ids. Over the last 6 months, the malware has been loaded onto phones and iPads about 356,106 times through app downloads.
Apple has issued an advisory to users to only download apps from the official Apple App Store and only from trusted developers. Ryan Olson, Intelligence Director at Palo Alto Networks said, “It would appear some people turn to the Maiyadi store because it offers applications for free.”
These are some other precautions that users can take in order to protect themselves from being exposed to this malware:
- Download and run the latest iOS version.
- Use an antivirus software.
- Don’t download applications from untrusted sources.
