How about karma's a bitch and criminals (the ones who tried to get the movies and music from other people's accounts by buying the access) getting burned by other criminals won't get sympathy from me?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Hackers Involved in Locking and Ransoming Apple Devices in Australia Arrested
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
How about karma's a bitch and criminals (the ones who tried to get the movies and music from other people's accounts by buying the access) getting burned by other criminals won't get sympathy from me?
Unfortunately the answers about "looking official" and whatnot are not really helpful. Even somewhat tech savvy people will can taken. Because, after-all, it is not hard to make an email look "official."
What I tell my less tech-savvy friends is to never, EVER, enter any user info, including password, in a web page they got to via an email link. Go to the website as you normally would. If there is a problem, it will tell you when you go and login.
Ebay just sent out email advising users to change their passwords. Did it include a link to do so? Nope. You were advised to login to Ebay normally to change it.
Michael
unpopular vote
Personally, I think these dudes are pretty clever for the most part. This was a new form of using phished info and hacking. They could be hired by Apple to help avoid this sort of thing.
Ya they should have been smarter, wire transfering it to themselves in and out of other countries IE CHINA!
This is the stuff Apple should focus on, not jailbreaking.
Personally, I think these dudes are pretty clever for the most part. This was a new form of using phished info and hacking. They could be hired by Apple to help avoid this sort of thing.
Ya they should have been smarter, wire transfering it to themselves in and out of other countries IE CHINA!
This is the stuff Apple should focus on, not jailbreaking.
Explain the scheme
Can someone explain the scam?
Is this it?
Can someone explain the scam?
Is this it?
- The bad guys set up an account at Apple
- They purchase entertainment media on that account. I assume using stolen credit cards?
- They sell access to this account to some sucker.
- When they purchaser agrees to buy the account, the bad guys ask for the buyer's Apple ID and password in order to transfer ownership.
- The buyer agrees and sends them his Apple account login credentials.
- The buyer discovers that the bad guys have instead used those credentials to lock the user's iPhone.
There is a real lack of something people used to call personal responsibility. A smartphone is like any other tool, which if you want to use it safely that means learning how. It doesn't take 20 years but it does take some commitment to looking out for ones self.
Basically you are defending people who want all the benefits of using this tool without any of the responsibility that comes with it. It is not up to corporations to protect people for their own laziness and stupidity. I teach people privately all the time how to use phones and computers. These people understand that they do not know and have taken the right responsible action to learn. Anyone can learn how to use these devices and avoid these issues.
Hackers like these use these techniques because they know there are users that don't bother learning how to keep themselves safe.
Excuse me? That's the most stupid thing I've ever heard. Shall we fire all police officers now and tell everyone they'll have to buy a gun or a knife and learn to use it? Shall we remove seat belts and airbags and ask people to learn how to drive better and avoid accidents?
Surely it's up to corporations to sell stuff that can be used safely? If that wasn't some random poster on MacRumors but someone official from Apple you claimed their customers are lazy and stupid, that would have some nice effect on sales.
Seems they are not clever at all, being in jail and all that. And do you _really_ think Apple should hire criminals? How long do you think until source code, employee details etc. etc. would be for sale?
1.police are not a corporation. If you walk around expecting police to protect you from being stupid you are lucky to be alive. If you decide to stick a fork in an outlet the police will not help you unless you are in protective custody...
2. To operate a car you are required to learn how to drive and get licensed. This was done so that people operating a vehicle knew how to do so safely (and yes accidents still happen but less now due to required training). So regardless of airbags (cars were around for years without belts and bags for years) you are expected to know how to operate it without being dangerous before allowed.
3. Smart phones are able to be used safely and corporations are required to make sure they can be used safely. So for example a gun is able to be used safely. If you shoot yourself in the head because you don't know how to use it safely that isn't the fault of the company. If you learn how to use a smart phone safely then it's not a problem, in this case the "victims" failed to learn how to use it safely and as such got tricked. And sorry but it's not a corporations responsibility to design something to the point that you do not have to learn how to safely use it, only to the point where if you learn how to use it correctly it is safe to use
Actually a lot if security companies and even government agencies do hire former criminals specifically for their criminal skill. Check out the movie catch me if you can which is based on a real life storey. There is an old saying "you need a thief to catch one".
Yes this does bring risks but most of the biggest advancements in security have been designed by people who have committed similar crimes since they are better at figuring out how to stop people with the same skills.