Two days after a number of Australians found their iPhones, iPads and Macs locked, and were greeted by a message demanding cash, Apple has stated that its iCloud was not actually compromised.
Affected devices were reported across several states in Australia displaying an error message attributing the hack to Oleg Pliss, and instructing users to send $100 (USD) or €100 to a PayPal account.
Responding to the hack, an Apple statement read: "Apple takes security very seriously and iCloud was not compromised during this incident. Impacted users should change their Apple ID password as soon as possible and avoid using the same user name and password for multiple services. Any users who need additional help can contact AppleCare or visit their local Apple Retail Store."
The hack has been described as a ‘standard’ ID and Password scam, rather than an iCloud server attack.
Oleg Pliss is a software engineer and computer scientist at Oracle, and it is likely his name has been misappropriated by the hacker behind the breach.
