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July 3, 2008 2:22 PM PDT

Researcher faults Apple iPhone on security updates

by Robert Vamosi

A leading Mac OS X researcher says Apple has not kept the iPhone operating system up to date with patches it has issued for the desktop.

The iPhone runs a stripped-down version of Mac OS 10.5 and automatically checks for security updates. The last update for the phone, 1.1.4, was issued in February.

That means iPhone users are still vulnerable to a flaw discovered by Charlie Miller in March.

During the CanSecWest conference, Miller found and used a buffer overflow in Safari in the Apple WebKit to win a $10,000 "Pwn to Own" contest. Apple patched Miller's Safari vulnerability for the desktop in April, but so far has not issued a similar patch for the iPhone.

Miller told the Washington Post recently he has an exploit of the flaw that will work on the iPhone.

Meanwhile, ZDNet's Ryan Naraine points out that there's another upcoming iPhone exploit expected soon from Aviv Raff.

Speculation within the security community is that Apple is currently focused on the 3G version of the iPhone. Upgrades to current iPhones may be pushed out in advance or concurrent with the July 11 release of iPhone 2.0.

Apple does not respond to requests for comment on its software security policies.

As CNET's resident security expert, Robert Vamosi has been interviewed on the BBC, CNN, MSNBC, and other outlets to share his knowledge about the latest online threats and to offer advice on personal and corporate security. Listen to his podcast at securitybites.cnet.com or e-mail Robert with your questions and comments.
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Add a Comment (Log in or register)
by ayoung45 July 3, 2008 3:30 PM PDT
Anyone think a firefox 3 mini browser will be available for the iphone?? That would be cool. And hopefully, it would also be secure.
Reply to this comment
by jackisgoodguy August 2, 2008 1:11 AM PDT
I'd like to know when new update for iphone would appear
My name is Jack, my web site is http://mysitehere.atspace.com/
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Covering computer viruses and computer crime, Robert Vamosi goes beyond the hype to provide you with expert interviews of the top security researchers, as well as offering the hands-on, nontechnical advice you'll need to stay safe online.

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