DoS attack on iPhone causes memory leak, freeze

iPhone owners should be on guard against a new threat, which fortunately doesn't harm the device, but still induces a freeze by taking all available system memory. According to security firm SecurityFocus, the vulnerability is exposed by a Denial of Service attack, when a maliciously crafted webpage is viewed. The page will insert code into the iPhone, which continually eats up available system memory before causing a kernel panic.

While not the first attack on the iPhone, SecurityFocus believes it could be harmful to the device's wellbeing by potentially executing remote code.

The DoS exploit has been verified to work on the 1.1.2 iPhone firmware; Apple has not commented on the issue

Filed under: iPhone, security, hacks
Other story tags: vulnerability, Panic, Denial of Service