A FREAK Of Nature And Security… iOS

iOS Safari Users, And Users Of Android’s Stock Browser Are At Risk

Hi all, as many of our loyal blog readers know, we don’t often write about anything unrelated to email marketing — unless it’s related to your digital security! Recently, a crew of cryptographers found a security issue that dates back to the 90’s. They’ve call the security flaw “FREAK,” which stands for, “Factoring attack on RSA-EXPORT Key.” According to said cryptographers, iOS Safari users, and users of Android’s stock browser are at risk of being hacked when they visit “secure” websites. In case you’re wondering which sites might be harmful, here is the list.

Here’s Some FREAK History

Back in the day, the US government required that companies use a weak 512-bit security encryption for visitors of the United States, and a stronger option for those living stateside. – so developers specializing in SSL, Secure Sockets Layer (an internet protocol with a design that provides communication security) created a system by which they could deliver both. Eventually this system ended up on many different kinds of software, even despite the fact that the government cancelled the 512-bit security requirement.

Google And Apple Are Already Working To Fix The Problem

Using the power of 75 computers, the cryptographers broke through the 512-bit security in only 7 hours. Via Engadget, who talked with Matthew Green, a research professor at John Hopkins, the 512-bit security was “designed to ensure that the NSA would have the ability to ‘access’ communications, while allegedly providing crypto that was still ‘good enough’ for commercial use.” Exploiting the security flaw could allow hackers to retrieve any of your personal info. Both Google and Apple are already working to fix the problem within the week. Though, if you want a quick fix, we recommend switching to chrome for mobile, as it’s not affected by the security problem.