2y ago

Apple Shuts Down Flipper Zero’s Ability to Shut Down iPhones

Apple Shuts Down Flipper Zero’s Ability to Shut Down iPhones::IOS 17.2 cut off Flipper Zero users running the Xtreme third-party firmware from mass-spamming popups at iPhones.

17 comments

Shouldn't this headline read "Apple fixes bug"?
This is why it's important these devices are available. Got to find and fix these sorts of vulnerabilities
- Exactly what i was thinking. This is the flipperzero working as intended.
- Seriously!
  Such A easy to exploit issue that they package it into a consumer market tool.
  Because if that's what's available to nontech folks, Imagine what a professional criminal tool has.
One of the best lines from Armageddon:
"Sir, the override. It's been overridden."
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This reads pretty much misleading to me.
They say the flipper could bomb phones within 30 ft range. Via NFC! I would even doubt them stating a range of 30 mm.
- That attack is via bluetooth, not NFC. And the article states exactly that (just checked).
- It mostly depends of the antenna setup.
  I'm fairly sure you can get several meters of range with an external antenna.
  
  I think a meter is pretty much the limit with most NFC. There is a longer range NFC+ that can reach further, but nowhere near 30ft.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Apple silently fixed an exploit that let Flipper Zero devices mass-bombard nearby iPhones with popup notifications, so much so they would essentially disable users’ phones requiring a restart.
Flipper Zero is a small multi-tool able to mimic NFC, RFID, or other radio signals.
With that, a Flipper Zero user could stand in a busy intersection and hit all iPhones in a 30-foot radius with popup notifications, enough to make the Apple device lock up and require a restart.
You can’t get the Xtreme firmware from Flipper’s own third-party app store, but it is still easy for anybody to download and install it on their NFC-replicating device.
The latest iOS update added a number of handy features like the Journal app, but as usual, Apple doesn’t expand on all its security fixes in its release notes.
Notably, iOS 17.3 is supposed to add a heap of anti-theft features, but we’ll need to wait and see whether Apple or any other device maker can put a stop to these annoying Bluetooth messages altogether.
The original article contains 375 words, the summary contains 171 words. Saved 54%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!
Is this another tale of script kiddies ruining a good thing. Jumping the bluebox
- No. This makes iPhones safer.
- The ability of one script kiddy to mess with people's iPhones.
Double shutdown on you!
"ON today's episode on hacking your flipper..."

17 comments