Australian Apple Users Hit by Find My iPhone Hijack Scam
- Tuesday, May 27th, 2014
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Apple users in Australia have been hit by a new form of cyber crime, as hackers have exploited a flaw in the Find my iPhone app to hack into users’ iCloud accounts and lock their phone, demanding a ransom payment if they want their phone unlocked.
The story was first reported by Australian newspaper, The Age, which says that iPad, iPhone and Mac owners in Queensland, New South Wales, Western Australia, South Australia and Victoria have reported being hit by the attack. One of those affected was told to send $50 to a PayPal account in order to have her phone unlocked.
Those affected have been venting their frustrations and seeking an answer to the mystery of how it happened on Apple’s support forums.
So far as we can tell, Apple has so far not come up with any official response to the situation, or solution for it. The latest release on the Apple Australia PR website is dated 29 April, titled ‘Apple Updates Macbook Air’.