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It wasn’t long after the introduction of the App Store on iOS before a separate app store for hacked apps appeared. Now it looks like the in-app purchasing system may have been circumvented without requiring a jailbreak. A Russian developer has created two certificates that can be installed on an iOS device that tricks apps into believing in-app purchases have been made, all without contacting Apple’s servers.

In addition, users are required to change the DNS settings of their WiFi connection on iOS to make the hack work. When users go to purchase content, the in-app prompt is replaced with a message asking the users to “like” the website. The app is then fooled into thinking the transaction has gone through, with purchased content then able to be used. The hack gathers a whole host of information too, including the GUID of your iDevice and application version numbers.

Apple has provided the following statement on the situation:

“The security of the App Store is incredibly important to us and the developer community. We take reports of fraudulent activity very seriously and we are investigating.” -Apple Representative

The developer is accepting donations on his website in an effort to spur momentum for the project, as currently it doesn’t work with every app in Apple’s library. While the developer encourages users not to pirate apps or abuse the tool, he reportedly helps those who are running into trouble with in-app purchases that aren’t working with the hack.

[via 9to5Mac]

Russian developer circumvents iOS in-app purchase system [UPDATE: Apple responds] is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

If you’re the foodie sort who also has an iPhone, the App Store has a new category that you will want to check out. Apple has officially added a new Food and Drink category that is live and packed with apps for you to check out. The section will naturally be where you’ll find apps from restaurants and recipe apps among other things.

The new section has almost 3000 apps covering drinks, recipes, cooking, and more. The Food and Drink section doesn’t have apps for things like dining, shopping, or coupons. In this section, you’ll run across applications for some of your favorite restaurants such as Starbucks, Pizza Hut, Fridays, and a lot more.

There also apps for finding restaurants and bars close to you. Interestingly, there also apps for things such as calculating tips and drinking games within the section. You can hit the App Store and check them out right now.

[via 9to5 Mac]

Apple App Store gets Food and Drink category is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

A controversial game for iPad created by Shenzhen ZQGame Network Co. was recently pulled from the App Store. The game, which had been available on the Chinese version of the App Store, had its users play by defending islands against Japanese soldiers carrying flags while also dressed as sumo wrestlers and ninjas.

According to China Daily, the game depicted the real-life political issues over the Diaoyu Islands in Asia. Shenzhen ZQGame was notified of its removal from the App Store with no explanation on why it was removed. The Chinese gaming company apologized to its users and is reportedly in negotiations over the game with Apple.

Although controversial, the ultimate reason why the game was taken down is because it was in violation of Apple’s terms of service, which state that any “enemies” in a game app cannot target any specific race, culture or government. Of course, this is not the first time the company has taken down a game without explanation from the App Store. Apple typically declines to comment on these issues and has not yet commented on the removal of Shenzhen ZQGame’s app.

[via Bloomberg]

Controversial Chinese iPad game gets pulled from App Store is written by Elise Moreau & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Good news for those of you who’ve encountered problems after updating your apps on the Apple App Store. According to reports online, Apple has announced that the problem has been resolved and shouldn’t occur again. Apparently the problem stemmed from one of its servers which generated DRM codes for the apps. However for those of you with corrupted apps – the problem isn’t going to fix itself. You’ll need to delete the affected apps on your iOS device and re-download them. Personally, I haven’t encountered any problems with the updated apps on my iPad so I can’t say if the updates have been fixed – but for those of you who experienced this problem, do let us know if it’s been fixed.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Apple App Store’s first spam sending app pulled, Jailbreak app Display Recorder available in the App Store,

You could call it technological baptism of sorts… just not the kind Apple would want. A Russian scam app known as Find and Call managed to hit the App Store and create havoc for those who dared a download, making it the first non-experimental malware to hit iOS without first needing a jailbreak. As Kaspersky found out, it wasn’t just scamware, but a trojan: the title would swipe the contacts after asking permission, send them to a remote server behind the scenes and text spam the daylights out of any phone number in that list. Thankfully, Apple has already yanked the app quickly and explained to The Loop that the app was pulled for violating App Store policies. We’d still like to know just why the app got there in the first place, but we’d also caution against delighting in any schadenfreude if you’re of the Android persuasion. The app snuck through to Google Play as well, and Kaspersky is keen to remind us that Android trojans are “nothing new;” the real solution to malware is to watch out for fishy-looking apps, no matter what platform you’re using.

[Image credit: C Jones Photography (wallpaper)]

Spam-happy iOS trojan slips into App Store, gets pulled in rapid fashion originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 05 Jul 2012 17:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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