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'Hacking Team' Data Breach Confirms Firm's Ability to Infiltrate Jailbroken iPhones
Cybersecurity firm Hacking Team experienced a data breach earlier today, resulting in 400 GB of its documents being leaked onto the Internet, reports The Guardian. The documents confirm Hacking Team's ability to infiltrate and monitor jailbroken iPhones on behalf of government law enforcement agencies like the NSA, as noted by Macworld.
Hacking Team uses a legitimate Apple enterprise signing certificate, which is used by corporations to create software that can easily be installed on employee devices, combined with jailbroken iOS devices to bypass iOS app installation protections. Additionally, Hacking Team developed the ability to create a malicious Newsstand app that could capture keystrokes and install monitoring software.
Last year, researchers working independently of each other at Kaspersky Lab and Citizen Lab discovered components of Hacking Team's tools and how they were used by government agencies to steal data from mobile devices, but the full extent of the software hadn't been confirmed until now.
Data breaching software and Apple devices have been in the news before, most famously in last year's celebrity iCloud data breach, where it was discovered that hackers were using ElcomSoft Phone Password Breaker, software intended for government and law agencies, to steal usernames and passwords to access iCloud backups.
While much of the discussion around government agencies and citizen data has revolved around mass collection, Hacking Team's software is designed to attack individual devices rather than a vast network. It's likely that the exploits detailed in Hacking Team's documents will be addressed and patched up in future iOS and Mac software updates.
Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.
Much has been speculated before and after Edward Snowden’s release of a trove of National Security Agency (NSA) documents in 2013 about the capabilities of the United States’ agencies as well as those of allies and enemies. The Hacking Team dump reveals quite a bit more about the routine functions of third-party suppliers into that ecosystem, including specifically enumerated capabilities.Hacking Team's software would need to be installed on a jailbroken iPhone, but the firm has the ability to jailbreak and infect a phone with its software via a malware-infected trusted computer the phone is connected to. In the firm's pricing list [PDF, requires Chrome], it's revealed hacking an iOS device costs €50,000 ($55,242) and includes "features" like Skype, WhatsApp and Viber chats, location, contacts and lists of calls. However, this service also includes a prerequisite of a jailbroken iPhone.
iOS users should therefore take note that the long-running concern that jailbroken iPhones and iPads were susceptible to vulnerabilities that could include access by so-called state actors appears to be confirmed by the data breach.
Hacking Team uses a legitimate Apple enterprise signing certificate, which is used by corporations to create software that can easily be installed on employee devices, combined with jailbroken iOS devices to bypass iOS app installation protections. Additionally, Hacking Team developed the ability to create a malicious Newsstand app that could capture keystrokes and install monitoring software.
Last year, researchers working independently of each other at Kaspersky Lab and Citizen Lab discovered components of Hacking Team's tools and how they were used by government agencies to steal data from mobile devices, but the full extent of the software hadn't been confirmed until now.
Data breaching software and Apple devices have been in the news before, most famously in last year's celebrity iCloud data breach, where it was discovered that hackers were using ElcomSoft Phone Password Breaker, software intended for government and law agencies, to steal usernames and passwords to access iCloud backups.
While much of the discussion around government agencies and citizen data has revolved around mass collection, Hacking Team's software is designed to attack individual devices rather than a vast network. It's likely that the exploits detailed in Hacking Team's documents will be addressed and patched up in future iOS and Mac software updates.
Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.
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54 months ago
Additionally, Hacking Team developed the ability to create a malicious Newsstand app that could capture keystrokes and install monitoring software.
Get back into your folder and just be glad I can't delete you… without a jailbreak.
54 months ago
It's a good thing Apple keeps making iOS more capable. I have less and less reason to jailbreak as they keep updating it.
54 months ago
That all sounds awful until you realize that you need an infected computer to make it happen
54 months ago
One of the arrogant members of that team was running his mouth on twitter this morning, stoking the fire even more. He was threatening the hackers who breached the data. Cool thing about all of the tools they have being released is within a few days, all the major anti-virus companies can update their software to find and remove this crap.
54 months ago
So.... you're only actually vulnerable if you happen to have a Jailbroken iPhone and a computer that is also infected with their malware.
Pretty unlikely scenario?
Pretty unlikely scenario?
54 months ago
So it requires a jailbroken device, attached to an infected trusted pc? Haha
Won't keep me from jailbreaking
No, the article could be a little clearer, but all you need is a jailbroken device to be vulnerable to the hack. The piece about the infected PC is one method by which an unjailbroken device can be hacked, presumably by surreptitiously jailbreaking it.
So if you have an unjailbroken phone it needs the extra step of being attached to an infected host, if jailbroken already, much easier, already vulnerable.
Since it cost 50k a hack, jailbroken or not, it's hard to get too worried about it. I don't think anyone would pay 50c to hack my phone. I am enjoying watching these asshats get their comeuppance however.
54 months ago
Aren't these guys got hacked themselves yesterday?
'Hacking team' went to 'Hacked team' and now they still claim some ability?!
Pathetic!
A team that got hacked themselves is able to hack iOS. That seems more ominous than if the team was super competent and secure themselves.
54 months ago
Which is *exactly* why I stopped jailbreaking when I put my credit cards on the phone.
54 months ago
So.... you're only actually vulnerable if you happen to have a Jailbroken iPhone and a computer that is also infected with their malware.
Not necessarily. There are several components:- Hacking Team's sniffing app can be installed on any iOS device because it is signed with a valid enterprise certificate.
- To give the app full access to the data on the phone, the phone needs to be jailbroken.
- Hacking Team offers malware for OS X and Windows that can jailbreak a phone that is connected to the computer, provided that the computer has pairing keys (the device has previously been connected to it). The malware could get on the computer e.g. via phishing or other means.
54 months ago
So it requires a jailbroken device, attached to an infected trusted pc? Haha
Won't keep me from jailbreaking
Won't keep me from jailbreaking
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