Apple Finally Shuts Down Security Flaw Used By Phone-Cracking Vendor

Apple Finally Shuts Down Security Flaw Used By Phone-Cracking Vendor

6 years ago
Anonymous $ZPWJA6-QD2

https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20181028/15020440930/apple-finally-shuts-down-security-flaw-used-phone-cracking-vendor.shtml

In a move that will anger law enforcement (but really isn't about law enforcement), Apple has succeeded in killing an exploit that allowed a third-party vendor to crack iPhones for investigators. A few months ago, Apple announced it was fixing the flaw that allowed products like GrayKey to bypass built-in security features to engage in brute force password guessing. Thomas Brewster of Forbes confirms the fix is finally in.

Multiple sources familiar with the GrayKey tech tell Forbes the device can no longer break the passcodes of any iPhone running iOS 12 or above. On those devices, GrayKey can only do what’s called a “partial extraction,” sources from the forensic community said. That means police using the tool can only draw out unencrypted files and some metadata, such as file sizes and folder structures.