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Apple Acknowledges iOS 6.1 Passcode Bug, Fix Coming in Future Software Update

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Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
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passcode_lock_keypad-250x242.jpg
Following today's significant publicity surrounding a bug in iOS 6.1 that allows users to bypass the iPhone's passcode lock to access the device's phone functions and contacts, Apple has issued a brief statement to AllThingsD acknowledging the issue and promising a fix for it.
Reached for comment, Apple said it is hard at work on a fix. "Apple takes user security very seriously" spokeswoman Trudy Muller told AllThingsD. "We are aware of this issue, and will deliver a fix in a future software update."
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The company did not provide a timeframe for the fix.

Apple issued a first developer beta of iOS 6.1.1 last week, but then delivered a public iOS 6.1.1 release only for the iPhone 4S earlier this week. We suspect that Apple rushed out the iPhone 4S bug fix update and that the original iOS 6.1.1 in developer testing will become iOS 6.1.2 as it proceeds through the development and testing process.

It seems reasonable to assume that Apple will have enough time to fold a fix for the passcode issue into this next release, but it is unknown when that update will be made available to the public.

Article Link: Apple Acknowledges iOS 6.1 Passcode Bug, Fix Coming in Future Software Update
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2013/02/14/apple-acknowledges-ios-6-1-passcode-bug-fix-coming-in-future-software-update/
nepalisherpa

nepalisherpa

macrumors 68020
Aug 15, 2011
2,258
1,330
USA
6.1 happened after so many months of beta and it is already plagued with so many bugs: 4S' bug, exchange bug, and this loophole. Don't know if they rushed or goofed up!
 
BC2009

BC2009

macrumors 68020
Jul 1, 2009
2,237
1,393
The way you have to jump through so many hoops to activate this security hole makes it look more like an "easter egg" or "backdoor" than a bug.

How on earth did anybody figure this out? The steps involved are astounding and they are hardly anything that you would stumble upon.

This totally seems like a backdoor coded into the phone by some disgruntled developer at Apple.

Oddly, the only thing this thing will let you access is the phone app -- not the rest of the phone. While that is bad, it is not nearly as bad as letting somebody launch eBay or Amazon with your saved password (assuming you save your password in those apps) and then start buying things.
 
Compile 'em all

Compile 'em all

macrumors 601
Apr 6, 2005
4,130
323
To be honest I don't care about how buggy iOS 6.1 is, I look forward to iOS 7 preview in June. Will be the first WWDC without Scott Forstall and may be we see a thing here or there from Ive.
 
A

Andy-V

macrumors 6502
Oct 1, 2007
413
594
SpyderBite said:
Which bugs are you referring to? I haven't had any problems with 6.1.

This is a security flaw. A minor one at that since thieves are rarely stealing smartphones for the contact lists.
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There's been this and MS Exchange bug. They're both quite high-profile, widely reported. So they've gained quite a bit of attention.

Edit: AND as mentioned below, the 3G bug. Honestly, it has been a pretty buggy release.
 
Tankmaze

Tankmaze

macrumors 68000
Mar 7, 2012
1,707
351
SpyderBite said:
Which bugs are you referring to? I haven't had any problems with 6.1.

This is a security flaw. A minor one at that since thieves are rarely stealing smartphones for the contact lists.
Click to expand...

just to list : the 3g issue (which has been fixed), exchange and this passcode.
 
TMar

TMar

macrumors 68000
Jul 20, 2008
1,679
1
Ky
SpyderBite said:
Which bugs are you referring to? I haven't had any problems with 6.1.

This is a security flaw. A minor one at that since thieves are rarely stealing smartphones for the contact lists.
Click to expand...

"I'm not having any issues so nobody is having issues".

3g issues, wifi issues, exchange issues, lockscreen bypass issue and several others that elude me at the moment.
 
W

Wordman

macrumors regular
Jan 14, 2010
137
126
lkrupp said:
No more and no less than previous iOS versions. Only the iHaters think like you do.
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Nope, I think like he does. And I have a lot of Apple products, no Android ones and no Microsoft ones. Lot of mistakes made recently, and brand loyalty is for suckers. Good products get the money.
 
M

Marius123

macrumors newbie
Aug 13, 2012
27
3
After an extremely unusual series of steps made to reproduce this bug, all I get is a black screen on my iPhone 5. Of course, getting a blank screen is clearly a bug but not really a security issue.
 
T

Tiger8

macrumors 68020
May 23, 2011
2,479
649
Wordman said:
Nope, I think like he does. And I have a lot of Apple products, no Android ones and no Microsoft ones. Lot of mistakes made recently, and brand loyalty is for suckers. Good products get the money.
Click to expand...

Cosign.

I am the biggest fan of apple but you have to admit the quality of their software qa has gone down. They no longer deserve the 'it just works' tag line.

And guess who's software quality is getting better?
 
S

SAIRUS

macrumors 6502a
Aug 21, 2008
818
516
Dear Tim,
Regression testing. Spend the money on it.

At the company I work at, we do tests on edge to LTE data on AT&T and Verizon (Sprint is also coming soon). The programmers work hand in hand with the testers to create as many scenarios as possible. We even go to client sites and test new releases. The end client has to be 100% happy.
 
K

KnightMan

macrumors member
Sep 12, 2012
60
0
And the faithful still insists "it just works." This is how you know when you're a fanboy. When you have patience/understanding and put up with issues after issue (Battery Drain, Exchange Sync, Bypass Security Code, etc...) all the while bad mouthing another OS if it had the same issues. And running back to iOS claiming it just works, and never has issues.
Face it, iOS is just like any other OS. It's not perfect.
 
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