Apple Ransom Demand Highlights Problem of Reusing Web Passwords

A hacker group that calls itself the “Turkish Crime Family” claims to have hacked into Apple’s systems and to have gained usernames and passwords for 559 million Apple email and iCloud accounts. They are threatening to remote wipe all data from iPhones associated with the accounts unless Apple pays $75,000 in Bitcoin or $100,000 in iTunes gift cards.

However, Apple says that it hasn’t been the victim of an attack. “There have not been any breaches in any of Apple’s systems including iCloud and Apple ID,” a company spokesperson said. “The alleged list of email addresses and passwords appears to have been obtained from previously compromised third-party services.”

Some are suggesting that the data the hackers have appears to have come from a previous breach at LinkedIn. But if users reused their login credentials for both services, it’s possible the hackers do have access to their accounts. In any event, it’s a good time for website owners to remind visitors not to reuse passwords and possibly to force a password reset.

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