Mystery Hackers Reportedly Draining iTunes Accounts

[Maura]

AppleInsider reports today on a story in The Global Mail that picked up on an Apple Support Community thread that ran across more than 70 pages of customer responses, some going as far back as November 2010. The thread details complaints from many, many iTunes users who reported either fraudulent app purchases that drained their gift card credits, or mysterious changes to their PayPal or credit card accounts and account information. Because the problem seems to have gone on for so long, some correspondents in the forum have accused Apple of not responding adequately, or even trying to keep the problem hidden. Apple responded to the story in the Global Mail with the following vague statement about its security policy.

“Apple takes precautions to safeguard your personal information against loss, theft and misuse, as well as against unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration and destruction. Apple online services such as the Apple Online Store and iTunes Store use Secure Sockets Layer encryption on all web pages where personal information is collected.”

AppleInsider says that Apple has not yet directly addressed the cause of the hacks, but one possible explanantion that has been put forward is that Apple’s iTunes gift card algorithm has been cracked. As far as fixing the problem is concerned, chief technology officer at Pure Hacking, Ty Miller, told AppleInsider that it’s possible that Apple has simply decided that it is easier, and cheaper, to refund customers who have been defrauded rather than trying to fix the entire system that permits the hacking to take place, however it is caused.

Source: iTunes customers facing mysterious account hacks, disappearing gift card money

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