Last week, hackers revealed that it is possible for bad guys to send text messages with misleading phone numbers attached to them. So someone could send you a text claiming to be from your bank and have it look like the call back number really is from your bank, then when you actually call it, it’s the bad guys’ hideout and they steal your money. I know it’s not like a real bad guys hideout like in the movies, I just like to imagine it like that. All secret knocks and stuff.
Apple’s iPhone was the case cited in the reporting on this bug although every phone uses SMS so it could be a problem with any mobile device.
Apple has come back to say that its own iMessage system is much more secure than the regular SMS system.
It told Engadget:
Apple takes security very seriously. When using iMessage instead of SMS, addresses are verified which protects against these kinds of spoofing attacks. One of the limitations of SMS is that it allows messages to be sent with spoofed addresses to any phone, so we urge customers to be extremely careful if they’re directed to an unknown website or address over SMS.
Of course, iMessage only works between Apple devices. So let’s all make sure that bad guys only have iPhones and this won’t be a problem. See? Simple.
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