Nope, it is not exactly spring cleaning. Apple stated that due to a recent large scale attack it has been forced to undertake a large clear out operation of its iOS App Store. According to cyber security firms alerting Apple to the issue, hundreds of iPhone and iPad apps were embedded with malicious software dubbed XcodeGhost, forcing their removal.
This attack is the first publicly reported case of malicious software evading Apple’s notoriously stringent app review process in such large numbers. The malicious code made it into the App Store after hackers convinced unwary developers to use a counterfeit version of Xcode, Apple’s software for developing iOS and Mac apps.
Ryan Olson (Paulo Alto Networks – Director of Threat Intelligence) insisted that the knock-off Xcode software was obtained from a server in China, which may have been used due to faster downloads than the ones offered by Apple’s US servers. So far Apple has not revealed just how many infected apps were discovered, but Chinese security firm Qihoo360 Technology announced (via a blogpost) that it had counted 344.
The threat has been neutralised and the Apple App Store is currently safe from any malicious software.
Source: TechRadar
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