A Worm in Your Apple: iOS Hit With First Severe Malware Attack

Apple Corporation said it’s currently working to clean up its iOS App Store from malicious software that infected many legitimate applications. The malware is called XcodeGhost, and was first reported by a number of security firms which found it in Apple mobile products, but only then did the company announce it’s working on dealing with the issue, Reuters reports.

In order to get embedded into legitimate apps, hackers persuaded app developers to work on a counterfeit Apple version dubbed Xcode, according to Apple, which was downloaded from servers in China possibly as it was faster than getting the original software.

“We’ve removed the apps from the App Store that we know have been created with this counterfeit software,” Christine Monaghan, Apple spokesperson, said in an email to Reuters. “We are working with the developers to make sure they’re using the proper version of Xcode to rebuild their apps.”

Before this major intrusion, there have been reported just five cases of malicious iOS programs. According to cyber security firm Palo Alto Networks Inc compromised apps included:

— popular mobile chat app WeChat;

— car-hailing app Didi Kuaidi;

— music app from Internet portal NetEase Inc;

— and 341 more mostly Chinese apps, according to Chinese security firm Qihoo360 Technology Co estimates.

The company has not yet clarified how Apple users can identify whether their gadget has been infected or not and how to deal with the issue if it has.

The news appears on the tails of reports of the newly-released iOS 9 installation causing device failures.