Researchers Crack iOS-Generated Hotspot Passwords in 50 Seconds

personalhotspotWhen tethering an iPhone or an iPad, iOS users have the option of using an automatically generated password for their personal hotspots, which Apple implemented to provide all users with a secure password option.

According to researchers at Germany's University of Erlangen (via ZDNeT), the way that the keys are generated – with a combination of a short English word along with random numbers – is predictable to the point where the researchers are able to crack the hotspot password in less than a minute.

In their paper, the three researchers detail the process that they used to figure out the weak spots in the hotspot's protection. Apple's word list uses approximately 52,500 entries, so initially, cracking the hotspot took almost 50 minutes. After finding a WiFi connection, the researchers used an AMD Radeon HD 6990 GPU to run through word and number combinations.

"This list consists of around 52,500 entries, and was originated from an open-source Scrabble crossword game. Using this unofficial Scrabble word list within offline dictionary attacks, we already had a 100 percent success rate of cracking any arbitrary iOS hotspot default password," the researchers wrote.

The team discovered that only a small set of Apple's larger word list was being used, so with GPU cluster of four AMD Radeon HD 7970s, they narrowed their iOS-generated hotspot password cracking time down to just 50 seconds. In the paper, the team goes on to criticize Apple's password generation standards, suggesting that system generated passwords be composed of random letters and numbers.

"In the context of mobile hotspots, there is no need to create easily memorizable passwords. After a device has been paired once by typing out the displayed hotspot password, the entered credentials are usually cached within the associating device, and are reused within subsequent connections," the paper states.

"System-generated passwords should be reasonably long, and should use a reasonably large character set. Consequently, hotspot passwords should be composed of completely random sequences of letters, numbers, and special characters."

As noted by ZDNet though Apple's password generation system is flawed, it is a more robust solution than what is used by other companies like Microsoft. For example, the Windows 8 phone utilizes default passwords that consist of eight digit numbers.

To avoid a weak iPhone hotspot password, users can still choose to use passwords of their own creation, which should contain a sequence of random numbers and letters for enhanced security.

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Thumb 1

'New' iPhone SE Product Listing Appears on French Website

Wednesday February 12, 2025 6:49 am PST by
As the wait continues for Apple's long-rumored, fourth-generation iPhone SE, French electronics retailer Boulanger has prematurely published a product listing for a "new" model of the iPhone SE. The placeholder page says the device is "coming soon," but it offers no further information, and the price shown is obviously not real. The listing was spotted by a reader of the French technology...
apple launch feb 2025 alt

What to Expect From the 'Apple Launch' Next Week

Thursday February 13, 2025 11:48 am PST by
Apple has yet to announce any new devices this year, but that could change starting next week. Apple CEO Tim Cook today said to "get ready" for a "launch" on Wednesday, February 19. "Get ready to meet the newest member of the family," said Cook, in a social media post. The post includes an #AppleLaunch hashtag, along with a short video featuring an animated Apple logo inside of a circle....
apple launch feb 2025

Tim Cook Teases an 'Apple Launch' Next Wednesday

Thursday February 13, 2025 8:07 am PST by
In a social media post today, Apple CEO Tim Cook teased an upcoming "launch" of some kind scheduled for Wednesday, February 19. "Get ready to meet the newest member of the family," he said, with an #AppleLaunch hashtag. The post includes a short video with an animated Apple logo inside a circle. Cook did not provide an exact time for the launch, or share any other specific details, so...
iPhone 17 Pro Render Front Page Tech

iPhone 17 Pro With All-New Camera Bar Design Allegedly Revealed

Thursday February 13, 2025 5:49 pm PST by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro will feature three rear cameras arranged in a familiar triangular layout, but the cameras will be housed in an all-new rectangular camera bar with rounded corners, according to YouTube channel Front Page Tech. iPhone 17 Pro camera design render created by Asher for Front Page Tech In a video uploaded today, Front Page Tech host Jon Prosser said the camera ...
m2 macbook air blue

M4 MacBook Air Release Continues to Appear Imminent

Monday February 10, 2025 10:56 am PST by
There continue to be signs of a new MacBook Air with an M4 chip, indicating that we could see the machine launch in the not too distant future. A private account on X today shared the identifiers that the MacBook Air will use, and those identifiers correspond to the M4 chip. According to the source, both the 13-inch MacBook Air and the 15-inch MacBook Air will be equipped with Apple's...
oppo find n5 fingers

World's Thinnest Foldable Phone Launches Next Week

Monday February 10, 2025 3:05 am PST by
Oppo has confirmed a February 20 global launch for its Find N5, which the company claims is the world's thinnest device in the foldable phone category. The phone is expected to be re-branded as the OnePlus Open 2 in the US. The Chinese vendor has been teasing the device in the last few weeks, touting its waterproofing and nearly invisible display crease, and highlighting its thinness by compa...
watchOS 11 Thumb 2 1

Apple Releases watchOS 11.3.1

Monday February 10, 2025 10:04 am PST by
Apple today released watchOS 11.3.1, a minor update to the operating system that runs on the Apple Watch. watchOS 11.3.1 is compatible with the Apple Watch Series 6 and later, all Apple Watch Ultra models, and the Apple Watch SE 2. watchOS 11.3.1 can be downloaded by opening up the Apple Watch app and going to General > Software Update. To install the new software, the Apple Watch needs to...
M4 mini Glowing Blue

Apple Begins Selling Refurbished M4 Macs

Wednesday February 12, 2025 11:35 am PST by
Apple today added MacBook Pro and Mac mini models with M4 series chips to its certified refurbished store in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Ireland for the first time since the computers were introduced in October 2024. Some refurbished MacBook Pro models with M4 chips are also available in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, and select other European countries. ...
sequoia

Apple Releases macOS Sequoia 15.3.1

Monday February 10, 2025 10:11 am PST by
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.3.1, a minor update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that came out last September. macOS 15.3.1 comes a few weeks after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.3. Mac users can download the ‌‌‌macOS Sequoia‌‌‌ update through the Software Update section of System Settings. Apple has also released macOS 13.7.4 and macOS 14.7.4 for those who are...

Top Rated Comments

cutmoney Avatar
152 months ago
Wow, I guess next time I setup a personal hotspot to check my email on my laptop, I'd better watch out for someone nearby with a "GPU cluster of four AMD Radeon HD 7970s". I mean seriously, who sets up a wireless hotspot on their iPhone using the password generator and then transmits some sensitive data which is at risk of (and in range of) some hacker that would have the ability (or desire) to crack their wireless hotspot security? It's hard enough to even get people to turn on any security much less worry about whether it could potentially be hacked. These "researchers" need to spend their time on something more useful.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Walter White Avatar
152 months ago
I always use my birthdate as password.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kkat69 Avatar
152 months ago
Mines easy, no need for massive data crunching... 1-2-3-4-5. I use the same on my luggage.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MaxxTraxx Avatar
152 months ago
I can imagine folks just roaming airports with these AMD systems looking for iPhone passwords.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ziggyonice Avatar
152 months ago
This does not appear to be an issue in iOS 7.

The passwords generated in the beta are not based on dictionary words and are considerably more randomized.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Menel Avatar
152 months ago
" so with GPU cluster of four AMD Radeon HD 7970s"

Using my iPad out in a park away from building WIFI. I think that, with a gas generator out in a park might be obvious and suspicious...

Also, use Bluetooth. The connection is persistent. iPad reconnects without fiddling with Phone because the phone doesn't idle it's bluetooth like it does WIFI. Also more secure as you will have to manually approve the connection. Problem solved, and everything fixed.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)