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New iPhone Passcode Security Flaw Discovered in iOS 6.1.3
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Can someone explain this to me? I thought that the data on an iOS device was "encrypted." How do these hacks and Siri work if the device is locked, or is the data really not protected?
First of all the iPhone 4 is still a decent phone. I gave mine to my bro when I updated to the 5 and he enjoys using it.
Secondly those 3 year contracts are really two when you take into account that the major carriers will allow you to upgrade without penalty after 2 years. That's how I got my 5 on launch day while in my second year of my contract.
As for the security flaw, again keep your phone safe on you and you wont need to worry.
Our company uses iPhone 4's predominantly because they work and any new version of iPhone doesn't really add anything new to the mix (the whole 'stagnant innovation' thing people keep mentioning is part of it).
Contrary to popular belief, not everyone races out to buy a new iPhone as soon as it's released.
Heck, most people I know still run Snow Leopard because much of the software we use won't work beyond Lion. It's not worth it.
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lol.
Jeez, for months it was "Apple doesn't need a low-cost phone. That's what the iPhone 4 and 4s are for." Now when another security flaw is uncovered, it's "Does anyone even use the iPhone 4?"
That's pretty clever of the carriers. After two years you can re-commit to them for a further contract period (calling it a penalty-free 'upgrade' makes it sound like they're doing you a favor).
OTOH, if you want to go to a competing carrier then you have to wait an extra year and stick with your old phone. Very clever indeed. I'm surprised they haven't caught on down here.
And I just renewed my Rogers contract for 3 years on an iPhone 4, but only because I gave the iPhone 5 to my friend as a gift, and took his 4.
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How are finding the Z10? Did you go Blackberry out of loyalty to a Canadian company, or do you actually like BB?
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The data is stored in an encrypted format on the device (in the flash memory), but the operating system can decrypt it at any time. That's all you're seeing here.
I still use a 3GS.
My wife has my 3GS, but the wifi is broken (probably jarred loose from too many drops, it turns on but cannot find any networks) and we don't pay for any data, so it's a dumbphone with some games on it for my 2 year old occasionally. She just uses it as a phone, and the iPad is hers for any other stuff. But I'm not too worried about this flaw. If anyone was this technologically inclined to be able to use this hack, they could probably hack my password without too much trouble. So they have all my friends numbers. Oh well, sorry!
It should be code analysis. By checking how control flows among different methods being called in execution, a clever programmer can find loopholes to exploit like this one.
Nope, no one uses iPhone 4 any more. Everybody has plenty of money lying about so that when a new phone comes out, they just throw away their old, crappy phone and pony up for a new one.
And those who still use that old crap...well, the hell with them, anyway!
I would be interested in knowing how such vulnerabilities are found.
I'm also a bit interested in knowing how such vulnerabilities come to exist... I feel like with a few simple state variables (IE, how about one that just says whether the iPhone has a password and a second for whether its been unlocked? Any calls for data not available from the lock screen put the iPhone in an invalid state and reset it to the lock screen?) such vulnerabilities shouldn't exist.
I'm also a bit interested in knowing how such vulnerabilities come to exist... I feel like with a few simple state variables (IE, how about one that just says whether the iPhone has a password and a second for whether its been unlocked? Any calls for data not available from the lock screen put the iPhone in an invalid state and reset it to the lock screen?) such vulnerabilities shouldn't exist.
If you lose your phone with sensitive info, you probably don't want someone else accessing sensitive info. And if the thief circumvents Find My iPhone (removes the SIM card, makes sure the phone isn't joined to WiFi), your last point of defense is passcode lock. The last thing you want in that case is a passcode security flaw.
At the very least, I don't see any harm in someone going through all the trouble to find a flaw such as this.
Welcome to the Apple community where you wouldn't want to be caught dead with an older Apple device.
Nope, no one uses iPhone 4 any more. Everybody has plenty of money lying about so that when a new phone comes out, they just throw away their old, crappy phone and pony up for a new one.
And those who still use that old crap...well, the hell with them, anyway!
Actually, it is more cost-effective to sell your 2 year old iPhone when the contract is up and upgrade. You can usually sell the old one on eBay for $250-ish (done this twice now, with a 3G and a 4). Of course, this assumes you like your carrier and aren't opposed to ponying up for another 2 year contract.
And yes, you still pay a subsidy even when your 2 year contract is up. I know because I got an iPhone 4 day one, and my bill didn't go down for the few months my contract was expired before upgrading to the 5.