iPhone “can be hacked with modified phone charger,” researchers warn

PanARMENIAN.Net - Apple's iPhone can be hacked using a modified phone charger with "alarming" ease, security researchers have warned, according to Digital Spy.

The team at Georgia Tech claim that they managed to exploit weaknesses in the handset's security in less than a minute using a charger they altered with readily-available materials.

"Apple iOS devices are considered by many to be more secure than other mobile offerings. In evaluating this belief, we investigated the extent to which security threats were considered when performing everyday activities such as charging a device," said the group.

"The results were alarming: despite the plethora of defence mechanisms in iOS, we successfully injected arbitrary software into current-generation Apple devices running the latest operating system software.

"All users are affected, as our approach requires neither a jailbroken device nor user interaction."

Although this method of hacking, dubbed Mactans, does not exist outside of the study, jailbreakers have used the iOS power port to gain control over the iOS operating system.

The researchers are due to present their findings at the Black Hat conference next month, and will make recommendations to Apple about how to improve its security.