MacBook Air hacked in two minutes
Thu Mar 27, 2008 10:52PM EDT
See Comments (15)
Still think your trendy Mac is immune to hack attacks? Think again. According to
PCWorld,
the MacBook Air was hacked within two minutes by Charlie Miller, who was generously
rewarded with a laptop and $10,000 for his effort.
Miller, who had previously exposed vulnerabilities in the iPhone last year, was among a handful of contestants who entered the PWN 2 Own contest that took place at the CanSecWest security conference.
Show organizers tempted contestants with a Sony Vaio, a Fujitsu U810 and the MacBook Air, which were given away to the first person able to hack into the system, and read the contents contained in a hidden file. On the second day, Miller was able to direct one of the show's organizers to a site laced with his exploit code, which ultimately gave him complete control over the computer in a matter of seconds.
Details of his exploit wouldn't be made public due to a non-disclosure agreement. But since the hackers were instructed to take advantage of pre-loaded software, it's possible he could've gained access to the computer through Apple's Safari web browser.
Related:
Are Macs vulnerable to
viruses?
Is Apple taking a 'Safari'
into malware territory?
Comments on MacBook Air hacked in two minutes
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Join in the discussion. Here you'll see the comments in the order they were posted.
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2 Posted by sach2n on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:59PM EDT Report Abuse
He was not able to hack it directly. only through web, that's not important at all. Macs are 100% safe for sure. Sachin
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3 Posted by maestro196@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:03PM EDT Report Abuse
Yeah because hackers never work through the web. Get over yourself mac fan. It's just a matter of time until your superiority complex come crashing down. Their are already viruses and trojan----- ting macs.
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4 Posted by shlomoavanade on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:20PM EDT Report Abuse
None of the computers were hackable directly. Apparently though Mac was the easiest to hack through malicious sites...
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5 Posted by msb_f1 on Fri Mar 28, 2008 6:05PM EDT Report Abuse
This is in response to sach2n who calls the Mac's "Completely Safe". Given the fact that there was a breach in the security of the MacBook, i don't think your comment is really backed up by proof. It might only be a vulnerability in the Safari browser, but it was the only computer (the others had Vista and Ubuntu installed) that was hacked !!... Also, Nolo_8 is absolutely right.. The only reason that Mac's aren't targeted as much is because their market share is virtually nothing !.. And as the recent hack clearly shows, they're not as foolproof as people seem to think !
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6 Posted by sealgair03 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:10PM EDT Report Abuse
There isn't a marketed OS out there that cannot be hacked if it is on an open network. Period. Mac doesnt get targeted as much because 1) there are more windows PCs, 2) more tools available to hack a pc, 3) windows is gaining market in servers. 4) high schools now teach both networking and programming on windows pc's. Add them together and you get more dumb kids that keep my job safe.
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7 Posted by sweber11@sbcglobal.net on Sun Mar 30, 2008 12:09PM EDT Report Abuse
Now days, none of them are hacked directly
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8 Posted by sandiskboy on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:03PM EDT Report Abuse
My mac has been hacked 0 times has 0 viruses and 0 spyware. I don't see what the issue would be if someone did hack my mac as they would still have several security layers to breach to get root.
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9 Posted by deanbroder on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:39PM EDT Report Abuse
Concerning Comment #1: Please look at PC design and speed. Mac blows PCs away, on nearly every application. Nearly every wireless network can be hacked by the best, over time. Take your PC to the corner bistro. Based on your commentary, nobody with any brains will hack your PC because you are a Bore.
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10 Posted by amway_global on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:53PM EDT Report Abuse
I disagree with this article witch is showing to the public that a mac is not a good choice for a computer. the mac is a good computer and was probaly hacked by a person who spends countless hours on his computer stealing information and is a expert in what he does. but for me the mac air is a good and secure computer "if" u know how to secure it and portect it.
1 Posted by nolo_8 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:40PM EDT Report Abuse
yeah, Apples are better than Pc's because they cant get hacked.....oh wait.... 10% of market share, kinda sad, shouldn't even be an argument of what is better.