After fast-spreading news of the Wirelurker virus that was affecting OS X and iOS devices made waves on the internet, Apple soon responded to the threat of the virus, effectively preventing it to spread further.
The Wirelurker virus is essentially malware that spreads upon downloading OS X apps from the third-party Maiyadi App Store. The virus is then transmitted to iOS devices through a wired USB connection; stealing valuable information such as user’s Apple ID, Serial Number, and phone number to name a few. What makes matters worse is that the iOS device in question did not need to be jailbroken, leaving all iOS device users vulnerable. The Wirelurker virus isn’t new per se as it has been circulating through a third party app store over six months, infecting a reported 467 apps.
An Apple spokesperson has stated that the company has caught wind of the virus and have proceeded to block the apps which contained the malware. The spokesperson also went on to add that users should only download apps from their own app store and not third party sources as the latter opens users to risks of malware and viruses.
Although Apple was quick to stifle the malware, Palo Alto networks is also to be credited as they were responsible for bringing news of the virus to light. They have estimated a total of 350,000 infected users ever since the virus began to surface.
[Source: MacLife]
