The web went aflame today with headlines like "First iPhone worm discovered", and many other variants. Most of those headlines, however, left out a very important little fact which diminishes the impact of the news considerably: it only affects jailbroken iPhones with SSH installed, and with default root passwords.
To view parent comment, click here.
To read all comments associated with this story, please click here.
Member since:2006-05-04
bull,
SSH utility for iPhone does not have command prompt to allow password change. One needs to install additional app or log in from computer.. which might be too late already.
First run of ssh in iPhone is useless if it does not allow to change password.
But what one would expect from the device that is not designed with security in the mind?
Maybe Apple should start paying more attention to security instead of worrying if application containing word iPhone (e.g. iPhone reference manual) will be admitted to Apple store or not.
Edited 2009-11-10 14:56 UTC
Member since:2009-11-10
...
But what one would expect from the device that is not designed with security in the mind?
What you have said is just profoundly silly. The SSH utility is a binary compiled and added by the jailbreakers. It's not something that comes with the iPhone nor shipped by Apple. The lack of an automatic way to change your password by default is completely the fault of the jailbreakers, not Apple.
Apple didn't provide any means for remote access so they certainly can't be faulted for not having "security in mind" if you hack in your own remote access tools and don't change the password.
That would be like faulting Honda for installing poor fire retardant materials in their cars after strapping your own homemade jet engine on the back. If the car explodes in a ball of flame due to your jet engine, it wouldn't be fair to then say that Honda doesn't design cars with safety in mind.
Member since:2007-01-22
"Maybe Apple should start paying more attention to security instead of worrying if application containing word iPhone (e.g. iPhone reference manual) will be admitted to Apple store or not."
It's actually creating the problem. More and more iphone users (not hacker geek types) want to jailbreak just so they can get all the apps that Apple blocks.
Member since:
2006-04-03
You don't have to be smart to Jailbreak an iPhone - 30 bucks and it's done - and you have to be incredibly dumb to install SSH and not change the root password. Those who've been affected need to go give themselves an uppercut.
As for the sensationalism, do we really expect anything else from the media? The same lot that tell us that everyone who dresses or looks or "acts" differently to "us" (whatever that means) is a terrorist, and we should lock our kids away in the house in front of the TV eating McDonalds because if we let them play outside they'll get sunburn and skin cancer then the perverts that are waiting behind every tree around the neighbourhood will snatch them away. If it wasn't for sensationalism they would be out of jobs - it's ALL they do...