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Malware discovered in Apple App Store, sends spam to contacts

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Malware discovered in Apple App Store, sends spam to contacts
It was bound to happen sooner or later. It is just that no platform is immune to hacker attacks, and iOS is no exception. Take this report from Kaspersky as proof: a malicious application has been discovered at the Apple App Store, supposedly the very first to be discovered there.

Called "Find and Call", its purpose is to steal the user's address book and to send spam to their contacts in the form of a text message containing a link to the app's download page. And before Android fans hit the comments section, allow us to note that the same mischievous application has been found on the Google Play store as well.

The malicious Find and Call app has been kicked out of the App Store

The malicious Find and Call app has been kicked out of the App Store" 

This is actually not the first iOS app to do not-so-good things with your contacts list. Back in 2008, an iPhone game called Aurora Feint could upload your address to a remote server, and it did it in plain text. Needless to say, it was pulled from the App Store. What makes Kaspersky refer to Find and Call as the first piece of iOS malware is that it uses the acquired information to distribute spam – the unwanted text messages we mentioned above.

Thankfully, the malware has been taken down already from both Google Play and the Apple App store. There are no reports of any major damage caused by it, and since the app was oriented towards Russian-speaking users, it is not likely that it has affected many outside of that part of the world. Besides, there were plenty of 1-star reviews submitted by those who downloaded it, which should have been enough to make potential victims aware of what the app truly does.

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1. ardent1 posted on 06 Jul 2012, 02:15 11 1

That is a nice grapic -- at least someone has a sense of humor.

2. IamYourFather6657 posted on 06 Jul 2012, 02:16 11 2

Recently I found apple's filtering has not been as strict as before .
Looks like apple is going downhill luckily I plan to abandon ship

3. mas11 posted on 06 Jul 2012, 02:17 10 2

I thought iOS was free from Malware.

9. PhoneArenaUser posted on 06 Jul 2012, 07:43 6 3

Myth of Apple fans, nothing more...

10. HTCFreak posted on 06 Jul 2012, 07:45 3 1

Myth of Apple, it's Apple who said that first. Don't blame the fans :)

13. PhoneArenaUser posted on 06 Jul 2012, 08:17 2 3

1. A lot of Apple fans was claiming that iOS can't get a malware even when there already was many oficial cases when iOS was infected/affected by malware. But they was still ignoring the fact and spreading this bulls**t myth around.

2. Don't need to be a blind fan and beleve in everything what Apple or any other company says to you, sometimes need to use your own brain!

17. remixfa posted on 06 Jul 2012, 09:50 4 3

problem is.. blind fans dont have their own brains. they wait for apple PR releases to tell their brains what to think.

malware is on every platform. Period.

21. DigitalBoy05 posted on 06 Jul 2012, 14:13

"Its a magical brand new way of keeping you guessing whats next" Apple PR :)

4. GeekMovement posted on 06 Jul 2012, 02:31 4 3

c.hack's comment from the article (Android malware compromising Yahoo! accounts discovered by Microsoft anti-spam expert):

"Not surprising for an unstable and insecure OS like Android. If only they had done more than rip off iOS and built in some security."

hmm... yea right... but nice try. i hope this teaches people who keeps accusing android of being the primary malware platform that it really does depend on what you do and what apps you download. To blame android upright is ignorant.

5. frydaexiii posted on 06 Jul 2012, 02:33 1 2

Not to mention that was proven wrong. It was just an intelligent guess. This however is real. Is it just me or are things switching around?

6. Tmachaveli posted on 06 Jul 2012, 04:27 2 1

The all mighty apple has a worm in it

7. RORYREVOLUTION posted on 06 Jul 2012, 04:54 6 3

Lol first Android phones have better battery life and now this! Oh the silly apple fanboys gotta be shaking their heads in shame.

Just admit your all mighty Apple isn't perfect, every device and software has its issues. Get off your high horse and admit its not flawless. As much as I love android its anything but flawless but I still love android nonetheless.

8. mrbtree posted on 06 Jul 2012, 07:36 1 3

sorry meant to thumbs up

11. HTCFreak posted on 06 Jul 2012, 07:52 3 4

Uhmm, i think some already did. But we just keep calling them iSh**p and Cr*pple fans... Seriously, why? They didn't do anything wrong (unless you consider having an Apple product is something wrong) Seiously, people, stop picking on Apple fans, can't you see that they've already settled down?

15. RORYREVOLUTION posted on 06 Jul 2012, 08:43 3 3

Are you kidding dude? Whenever there's an article about some android related virus taco and the rest of them are quick to bash Android and make claims that IOS has no viruses. Maybe you should do a little bit of research before you try to shoot me den and defend them.

12. andro. posted on 06 Jul 2012, 07:53 2 3

Apple:this does not exist,believe us or else.........

14. JC557 posted on 06 Jul 2012, 08:34 2 2

I wonder if they're going to find a way to blame it on Jailbreaking.

16. JessJess (unregistered) posted on 06 Jul 2012, 09:07 2 4

It's hardly malware on the scale of which you can be infected in android. Tell me this is the worst that can be done to my android device in google play? Im pretty sure its not...... I know people clamour for ways to bash Apple but really - a little perspective is nice.

19. taz89 posted on 06 Jul 2012, 10:45 1 1

the difference is android fans dont say android is malware free where as many apple fans actual think that apple is super secure lol and dont realise the fact that an iphone can be jailbroken is also a sign of not being secure...like with anything as long as you are buying from a trusted source like play store or amazon store are the app store and with common sense you should have no problem..its the people who download cracked apps that should worry

18. Quezdagreat posted on 06 Jul 2012, 09:53 1 3

lmao i knew i could find the fandroids here bashing apple once again. You guys never disappoint. who would download this app, its not even written in english.

I bet there is 10x more malware infected phones on andriod than ios.

20. jmoita2 posted on 06 Jul 2012, 11:41 1 2

Apparently the one who has been disappointing lately has been... Apple!!!
Wasn't it supposed to be the "safest" malware free OS in the world??? At least that's one of the cornerstones in their advertising.

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