Earlier this week, a number of iOS and Mac users reported iPhones, iPads, and Macs being remotely locked by hackers who then demanded a ransom for their recovery.

australian ios device hacked

The attacks primarily affected those located in Australia. While there have been many theories about common points of attack, no one theme has emerged. Some users also deny that passwords were shared with other services.

ZDNet reports that Apple has issued an official statement denying that iCloud itself was hacked.

Apple takes security very seriously and iCloud was not compromised during this incident. Impacted users should change their Apple ID password as soon as possible and avoid using the same user name and password for multiple services. Any users who need additional help can contact AppleCare or visit their local Apple Retail Store.

A growing discussion thread on Apple's support forums is following the issue.

Thanks Dominik

Top Rated Comments

surfingarbo Avatar
145 months ago
Who actually asks for a ransom in typed-text format? Real ransom's are made with individual letters cut from magazines with a scissors.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iGuyS Avatar
145 months ago
Surely there was some way Apple could have defended itself without sounding like it was just blaming its users.

Defensive Apple sounds defensive.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
silvetti Avatar
145 months ago
It's so obvious this is a user problem (weak passwords) that I don't even know why people pay attention to this.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
GoCubsGo Avatar
145 months ago
Not wanting to defend anyone here - but can you show me where they blame the users? Is their advice bad?

They're advice isn't bad but I feel like I've seen Apple take the "it's not us" stance before then later turn around and admit there was some breach or something. My memory could be wrong.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CarpalMac Avatar
145 months ago
Given that Spotify recently recommended that all android users change their spotify account passwords after one account was potentially compromised, it is interesting to see Apple take a much more "nothing to do with us" stance. I hope for their sake that they are 100% sure on that one.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
whooleytoo Avatar
145 months ago
It's so obvious this is a user problem (weak passwords) that I don't even know why people pay attention to this.

Because guesswork isn't good enough. It's important to know.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

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