New iOS malware in China hijacks apps and forces full-page ads in Safari

By David Curry October 5, 2015

the iphones switch control has opened up a world of possibility for quadriplegic todd stabelfeldt apple iphone 6s 7859 1500x1 — Jessica Lee Star/Digital Trends

Malware on iOS is starting to become a weekly news event. This week’s intrusive software comes in the form of YiSpecter, a program capable of taking over iOS and displaying full-page ads on Safari.

The new malware, which is making the rounds in China and Taiwan, offers ways to circumvent the government’s Internet censorship. It persuades users to download a private version of QVOD, a defunct media player used for sharing pornography and other illegal content in China. QVOD was shut down in 2014 after police raided the developer’s offices, but it is still incredibly popular in China’s underground Web as a portal to illegal content.

Related Videos

Once the app is downloaded, YiSpecter tricks iOS SpringBoard — the software that manages the on-screen icons on iOS — to stop users from uninstalling the app. It then blends into the background, hiding under one of the many system apps on iOS.

YiSpecter is able to “replace existing apps with those it downloads, hijack other apps’ execution to display advertisements, change Safari’s default search engine, bookmarks and opened pages, and upload device information,” according to Palo Alto Networks. A Chinese mobile advertising service was allegedly responsible for the malicious app.

Luckily, Apple acknowledged the problem quickly and removed the app.

“We advise customers to stay current and only download content from the App Store and trusted sources … This particular vulnerability was indeed fixed in iOS 9.0,” an Apple spokesperson said to CNET.

News of the YiSpecter attack follows last week’s Chinese malware panic, which was caused by several high-profile developers who used a faulty version of Xcode to build apps. Those apps have since been purged from the App Store and replaced with apps built on a legitimate version of Xcode.

The YiSpecter attack is another case that proves China’s wild west approach to app curation is not working. Without checks in third-party apps stores, it’s easy for malicious programs to bypass iOS security.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Mobile

The iPhone 14’s most annoying feature might be worse on the iPhone 15

Transferring an eSIM from an old iPhone to an iPhone 14.

While there's a lot to love about the iPhone 14, its lack of a SIM card tray in the U.S. variant was controversial, to say the least. Unfortunately, it looks like the iPhone 15 will be following its predecessor's lead and ditching the SIM card tray as well — this time for models across the globe, not just in the U.S.

According to a report by French publication iGeneration, the iPhone 15 and 15 Pro are likely to be released "without a physical SIM card in France." Although France is just one country, if iPhones are losing their SIM card slots in Europe as well as the U.S., then it seems likely that they'll be disappearing entirely for the upcoming generation.

Mobile

9 Apple products we’re expecting in 2023: iPhone 15, M2 Mac Pro, and more

An iPhone 14 sitting on a wood desk.

Apple is one of the most secretive companies in the world of big tech. Rumors of future products seem to develop years ahead of their time, and while we can all speculate as much as we want, we don’t really know what new products Apple has coming until they're announced. For existing products, though, it’s a little easier since most of those tend to be on an annual upgrade cycle, with a few exceptions.

But the rumor mill for new products, like Apple’s mixed reality headset, has been reaching peak levels of hype recently, which leads us to believe its release is imminent. We could also have the first iPhone with USB-C charging, eliminating the need for proprietary Lightning cables, and even a 15-inch MacBook Air.

Mobile

You aren’t ready for this Galaxy S23 vs. iPhone 14 Pro camera test

Deep purple iPhone 14 Pro and Cream Galaxy S23 crossed over

Samsung’s Galaxy S23 is here, and it's quickly become one of the best phones you can buy in 2023. For $800, you’re getting a small but mighty phone with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy chipset, long-lasting battery life, and a powerful triple lens camera system with a 50-megapixel main shooter.

But how does one of the best Android phones stack up against Apple’s smallest flagship, the iPhone 14 Pro? It has just as many cameras as the Galaxy S23, a powerful 48MP main camera, and costs $200 more than Samsung's handset.