On Tuesday, Wikileaks published its latest document leak. Besides detailing the best emoticons on the internet, the majority of the included documents, dubbed “Vault 7” by Wikileaks, lay out the CIA’s hacking capabilities.
Several of the most concerning documents details how the spy agency has acquired malware, either developed on its or purchased from third-party non-state actors, that can turn iOS and Android smartphones, as well as Samsung smart TVs, into listening devices. Specifically, one of the documents references 14 zero day vulnerabilities found within iOS.
If you’re an iOS user, this news should be concerning; many of the vulnerabilities allow the CIA, as well as any party that’s also aware of their existence, to gain kernel access an iOS device. However, the good news is that in a statement issued to TechCrunch (see below), an Apple spokesperson said that the company has already patched ‘many’ of the 14 listed exploits. Further, the spokesperson said the company is working on addressing the remaining exploits as quickly as possible.
“Apple is deeply committed to safeguarding our customers’ privacy and security. The technology built into today’s iPhone represents the best data security available to consumers, and we’re constantly working to keep it that way. Our products and software are designed to quickly get security updates into the hands of our customers, with nearly 80 percent of users running the latest version of our operating system. While our initial analysis indicates that many of the issues leaked today were already patched in the latest iOS, we will continue work to rapidly address any identified vulnerabilities. We always urge customers to download the latest iOS to make sure they have the most recent security updates.”
As mentioned earlier, one of the documents also details two dozen Android expliots. Google did not respond to TechCrunch’s request for comment.
[source]TechCrunch[/source]
MobileSyrup may earn a commission from purchases made via our links, which helps fund the journalism we provide free on our website. These links do not influence our editorial content. Support us here.
