Several iPhones and iPads in Australia and New Zealand were reported hacked and held for ransom on early Tuesday, May 27, 2014 by a smartphone hacker who identified himself only as "Oleg Pliss". The hacking spree mainly affected iPhone and iPad users through a security loophole found within the devices' "Find my iPhone" feature. The aforementioned featured allows the smartphone owner to remotely lock their devices in the event these are stolen. However, it seemed as though the phone owners' right to their gadgets were forcefully taken from them with the Oleg Pliss hack.
Aside from being unable to use their smartphones' basic calling and messaging features, iPhone and iPad users also received a prompt on their phone screens ordering them to pay between $50 to $100 to regain access to their smartphones. It is believed that only those who received an alarm from the hacker were victimized by the attack. Although the exact count of those affected are unclear, problems have been reported by Apple customers in New South Wales, Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, and Queensland. New Zealand users were not spared and a handful smartphones were compromised sometime during the day.
Apple has yet to comment on the attacks but the Apple forums have been awash with tips on how to reverse the effects and regain control of their gadgets.
Those whose smartphones were not protected by a password were the hardest hit since the hack involved a change in security passcodes for all users. To reverse the lock, users may enter the passcode incorrectly six times and reset the code through iTunes.
Those who had set up a password for the smartphones could easily re-access their device by logging onto iTunes through a computer and restoring the changes online.
While investigations behind the attack are ongoing, Apple reminds its users to set up a passcode, change their iCloud access details, and make use of Apple's secure two-step verification system.
