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A zero-day vulnerability in iCloud and iTunes on Windows PCs allowed hackers to install ransomware undetected.



 
 
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  #1  
Old October 12th 19, 04:55 AM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,alt.windows7.general
Arlen _G_ Holder
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 53
Default A zero-day vulnerability in iCloud and iTunes on Windows PCs allowed hackers to install ransomware undetected.

Be advised... (as this vulnerability has apparently existed for 15 years
where antivirus programs are NOT catching it (as it's in the untested
Bonjour application that is installed separately & updated by Apple)...

o A zero-day vulnerability in iCloud and iTunes on Windows PCs allowed hackers to install ransomware undetected.
https://groups.google.com/d/msg/alt.comp.freeware/hftPQAEZr_g/wE5JBam9DQAJ
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  #2  
Old October 12th 19, 08:46 AM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,alt.windows7.general
Stan Brown
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Posts: 2,904
Default A zero-day vulnerability in iCloud and iTunes on Windows PCs allowed hackers to install ransomware undetected.

On Sat, 12 Oct 2019 03:55:40 -0000 (UTC), Arlen _G_ Holder wrote:

Be advised... (as this vulnerability has apparently existed for 15 years
where antivirus programs are NOT catching it (as it's in the untested
Bonjour application that is installed separately & updated by Apple)...

o A zero-day vulnerability in iCloud and iTunes on Windows PCs allowed hackers to install ransomware undetected.
https://groups.google.com/d/msg/alt.comp.freeware/hftPQAEZr_g/wE5JBam9DQAJ


I have long recommended disabling Bonjour. It's not necessary with
iTunes. I think it _is_ necessary with Apple TV, but I don't have
that.

http://oakroadsystems.com/tech/7service.htm#iTunes

--
Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Tompkins County, New York, USA
http://BrownMath.com/
http://OakRoadSystems.com/
Shikata ga nai...
  #3  
Old October 12th 19, 05:45 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,alt.windows7.general
Arlen _G_ Holder
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 53
Default A zero-day vulnerability in iCloud and iTunes on Windows PCs allowed hackers to install ransomware undetected.

On Sat, 12 Oct 2019 03:46:55 -0400, Stan Brown wrote:

On Sat, 12 Oct 2019 03:55:40 -0000 (UTC), Arlen _G_ Holder wrote:

Be advised... (as this vulnerability has apparently existed for 15 years
where antivirus programs are NOT catching it (as it's in the untested
Bonjour application that is installed separately & updated by Apple)...

o A zero-day vulnerability in iCloud and iTunes on Windows PCs allowed hackers to install ransomware undetected.
https://groups.google.com/d/msg/alt.comp.freeware/hftPQAEZr_g/wE5JBam9DQAJ


I have long recommended disabling Bonjour. It's not necessary with
iTunes. I think it _is_ necessary with Apple TV, but I don't have
that.

http://oakroadsystems.com/tech/7service.htm#iTunes


Hi Stan Brown,

Thanks for that fantastic factual page on how to handle iTunes on Windows.
http://oakroadsystems.com/tech/7service.htm#iTunes

o I have one question I would LOVE a detailed answer to (or a simple one).
Q: What does iTunes do that Windows users can't do better, without it?

I have plenty of iPods and iOS devices, and I have Windows (XP & 10), where
I have a question, mostly out of curiosity, of what iTunes does for a
Windows user who owns iPods and iOS devices ... that the Windows user can't
do far better without iTunes.

As you're likely aware, in the olden days when I used my iPods frequently,
iTunes was only required to "initialize" that iPod (essentially to lock it
to a user id) - where iTunes was then immediately deleted since it was more
restrictive to have iTunes, than to NOT have iTunes on Windows.

What I copied to each of my iPods, in those days, which still works today
on those iPods, is SharePod freeware, version 1 or 2 as I recall (I could
look but the fact is SharePod changed over time so I'm talking the original
SharePod software).

Once you put SharePod freeware on the iPod, NOTHING was needed on Windows.
I repeat: Nothing whatsoever is needed on Windows to manage your MP3 songs.
a. You connect the iPod to Windows
b. You start SharePod (it sits on the iPod as a sort of "portable app")
c. You slide MP3 songs freely to ANYTHING connected to that Windows PC
(e.g., Android devices, iOS devices, other iPods, network shares, etc.)

That use model is so simply and so powerful, I can't imagine why anyone
would want the bloatware that is iTunes, even though you "can" install
iTunes without the bloatware if you're careful about doing so:
o How to Install iTunes without Bloatware
https://geekermag.com/install-itunes-without-bloatware-windows-10/

Add to the bloatware the fact that iTunes is an abomination and you get an
idea of why I ask you what does iTunes do that you can't do, better,
without it?
o The abomination that is iTunes on Windows
https://www.troyhunt.com/10-graphic-examples-of-abomination-that/

WITHOUT iTunes, I can connect any iOS device to my Windows computer, and,
without Windows even running (yes, you heard that clearly), I can easily
slide ANYTHING I want in and out of the iOS visible file system onto
anything else
o How to use an iOS device as a read/write USB stick using only freeware
https://groups.google.com/d/msg/alt.os.linux/WqIDiVbawRs/pwxzu7LMCAAJ

Stan,
You seem to use iTunes conscientiously, and I doubt you're an Apple
Apologist, so I don't expect the type of bull**** that they spout, where I
simply ask you a logical question based on the facts as I understand them.

It seems to me that you have more power & flexibility on Windows WITHOUT
iTunes, than you do with iTunes, if you own iOS & iPod devices.

But maybe there's something I am unaware of that iTunes does for Windows
users.

In summary...
o I have one question I would LOVE a detailed answer to (or a simple one).
Q: What does iTunes do that Windows users can't do better, without it?
  #4  
Old October 13th 19, 11:15 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,alt.windows7.general
Stan Brown
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 2,904
Default A zero-day vulnerability in iCloud and iTunes on Windows PCs allowed hackers to install ransomware undetected.

On Sat, 12 Oct 2019 16:45:46 -0000 (UTC), Arlen _G_ Holder wrote:
o I have one question I would LOVE a detailed answer to (or a simple one).
Q: What does iTunes do that Windows users can't do better, without it?


It manages metadata and playlists. I looked at several freeware
programs a few years back, and based on their listed capabilities I
didn't find any of them worth downloading. Note "a few years back" --
I don't remember details, but probably it was associated with
handling of some metadata and handling smart playlists.

Your mileage may vary. If you don't use the same capabilities of
iTunes that I do, you might well find a third-party product that does
what you need.


--
Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Tompkins County, New York, USA
http://BrownMath.com/
http://OakRoadSystems.com/
Shikata ga nai...
  #5  
Old October 14th 19, 07:04 AM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,alt.windows7.general
Arlen _G_ Holder
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 53
Default A zero-day vulnerability in iCloud and iTunes on Windows PCs allowed hackers to install ransomware undetected.

On Sun, 13 Oct 2019 18:15:25 -0400, Stan Brown wrote:

It manages metadata ...


Hi Stan Brown,

Thank you for hazarding a guess ... as I know that's risky on Usenet.
o It seems to me, you can do more WITHOUT iTunes, than you can with it.

But I'm pretty good with software (while most people are not, it seems).

I admit I only have a few thousand MP3 songs, so, for me, managing what you
call "meta data", for me, is simply the ID3tags themselves, which, as you
must be aware, is easily handled by a plethora of freeware apps.

I'm sure there is _other_ metadata (is there?) that matters to people
(e.g., album covers for example), but none of that would matter to me.

For videos, I don't deal with 'metadata' much, as I probably only have a
few score full-length feature films, as they simply take up too much space
on my hard drives (even with multiple terabyte drives now being cheap).

For photos, each photo is jam packed with EXIF metadata, which is an
integral part of the photo.

I'm sure there's other metadata that you speak of, so I might ask you, and
others, what 'metadata' does iTunes manage that you don't already manage
without iTunes?

It manages metadata and playlists.


As for playlists, I don't generally use them myself, but aren't they simply
a text file that VLC or MPCPlayer HD can just play, one by one?

If a playlist is just a text file, isn't it trivial to manage as many as
you want, completely outside of iTunes?

I looked at several freeware
programs a few years back, and based on their listed capabilities I
didn't find any of them worth downloading. Note "a few years back" --


I understand. Neither of us is an expert in this stuff.

I used iTunes myself, when I initialized iPods, but I was innocent then.
o I didn't realize iTunes enforced a Draconian "library" policy
O I didn't realize iTunes' installer was a piece of **** in many ways
o I didn't realize iTunes' bloatware was horrific (remember Quicktime?)

After just a few weeks on iTunes, I had to rip it off my system.
o It was that bad.

I have plenty of iOS devices, where I find zero need for iTunes.

As you may be aware, I have no problem turning my iPad into a read and
write USB stick - something that people on the Apple newsgroups don't even
know how to do (even though I wrote tutorials aplenty on the topic).

See this thread, from just today, for example, where Apple users "think"
they have to purchase expensive Apple dongles to get _less_ than what I
get, completely free.
o IOS 13 support for USB devices, by JF Mezei
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/misc.phone.mobile.iphone/kiBd5O6_O1w

The point is that I've been able to do EVERYTHING I need to do with both my
iPods and my iPads, WITHOUT iTunes.

Certainly what I do is NOT RESTRICTED by the Orwellian iTunes rules.
o That's why I asked why, on earth, anyone uses iTunes in the first place?

I don't want to put you on the spot, so I ask the question at large:
o What does iTunes do that you can't do better ... without it?

I don't remember details, but probably it was associated with
handling of some metadata and handling smart playlists.


I guess the keyword is "smart", since metadata is part of the data (e.g.,
EXIF information in JPEGs), and playlists (AFAIK) are simply text files.

Your mileage may vary. If you don't use the same capabilities of
iTunes that I do, you might well find a third-party product that does
what you need.


As I noted, iTunes is so badly written that it can't be on my system, which
is a decision I made in the iTunes 9 or 10 days (maybe even earlier), while
I was still on WinXP most of the time.

When I moved to Windows 7, and then to Vista and Windows 10, I never had a
need for iTunes' Draconian MP3 policy (they wipe everything out without
even telling you when they're doing it).

Since I don't initialize iPods anymore ... I don't even have a use for the
one thing iTunes did (where SharePod, older version, portable apps, works
just fine as a complete iTunes replacement on the iPod).

For my iOs devices, I _already_ have full read/write capability, as I have
the iOS devices turned into USB sticks, where I most often slide
full-length feature films over USB onto the iPad to play in VLC.

Given that I have full read/write to the iPads, I don't see what iTunes
gives us, but I certainly see what iTunes takes away - which is why I ask:
o What does iTunes do that you can't do better ... without it?

In this case, it's also a security hole that Apple didn't even look for for
more than a decade, which, if you're not aware, is a recurrent pattern for
Apple (see the newsgroups for details):
http://tinyurl.com/misc-phone-mobile-iphone
http://tinyurl.com/comp-mobile-ipad
http://tinyurl.com/comp-sys-mac-system
etc.

If someone who actually uses iTunes a lot can respond, that would be
helpful, as I generally deplore software that is designed to restrict what
you can do.

It seems to me, you can do more WITHOUT iTunes, than you can with it.
 




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