Apple accounts getting hacked

[bucky]

Just an FYI. Keep your eye on your credit card transactions daily if you are not already doing it. Over $200 was charged to my card originating from China. Apple corrected quickly, as they agreed my account did not place the orders. There is quite a lot of talk on the Apple forums about Apple pretending this doesn't happen, along with many experiences like mine. My card was NOT hacked, Apple was hacked. I now have my card company send me an immediated email if any international or non swiped transaction occurs. There was no other fraudulent activity on the card, only the 5 hits on the same day from China. If you are using a debit card for an Apple account, be aware it will take you much longer to get your money back. My personal opinion is that it was an Apple employee or group of same. Apple was VERY professional thru the process, and my card was credited within hours.

[paulcardoza]

Why not just have your bank issue a new card number? No way I would spend 6 months fighting the issue.

rockhillmanor wrote:


I've been on the phone with them for 6 months, its built into their system. Even if you make the darn clerk delete it from the on line reciept.....you can go to the next UHAUL seven states away and they have it on file and don't even ask you for your card for your purchase, they push a button and your card is charged!! (

[TechWriter]

bucky wrote:
My card was NOT hacked, Apple was hacked.

Just to be sure you may want to check your credit reports (TransUnion, Experion, and Equifax). See FTC Consumer Info.

[bernardgam]

rockhillmanor wrote:

1492 wrote:
Unfortunately, this is nothing new, and was reported last year by Chinese Global Times that 50,000 iTunes accounts had been hacked and being sold on a popular Chinese auction site Taobao. I actually scanned the site and found a number of listings for iTune accounts for sale. Most involved accounts with prepaid iTune cards.

Good idea to routinely change your password which I've done since originally reading this story. I also don't keep a credit card on file with iTunes.

a little OT: does anyone else get that '8 page new contract must agree to' link each and every time I need to put my password in?

It sounds quite dangerous for netizens now.

[milo]

I don't have an Apple account so no worries there. I do receive daily alerts + I log into each CC daily to check on em & make sure nothing fishy is goin on with em. I also check the bank accounts daily to make sure there are no unusual withdrawals. I trust nobody (outside the house hold).

[mike4947]

wa8yxm wrote:
I think my Apple account is safe.

Kind of like a Phish I forwarded to Bank of America (headers and all)

"We are having trouble verifying your Bank of America Account, Please click here and enter all your log in data"

I don't wonder they are having trouble accessing my BoA account.. I don't have one.

I feel left out if I don't get at least 2 a week for banks/Well Fargo that I don't have accounts with.
I especially like the Well Fargo ones that say you have money holding. Click on it and it leads you to a phantom site and and requests so much of your info they could take over your life.

[lwmuddy]

And to think that they used to say that sending cash in an envelope along with an order was a bad idea. Who new. There is much good about the good old days, at least they only got a little cash instead of your entire life savings.

[wa8yxm]

I think my Apple account is safe.

Kind of like a Phish I forwarded to Bank of America (headers and all)

"We are having trouble verifying your Bank of America Account, Please click here and enter all your log in data"

I don't wonder they are having trouble accessing my BoA account.. I don't have one.

[Y-Guy]

I opt to buy iTunes gift cards instead of giving my CC. It works fine and protects my accounts. Plus I buy all my gift cards when they are on sale so I save about 20% on the cards which then translates to a savings for apps and music too.

rockhillmanor, I've read about this if you google it some you'll find some others with the issue and some possible solutions.

[rockhillmanor]

1492 wrote:
Unfortunately, this is nothing new, and was reported last year by Chinese Global Times that 50,000 iTunes accounts had been hacked and being sold on a popular Chinese auction site Taobao. I actually scanned the site and found a number of listings for iTune accounts for sale. Most involved accounts with prepaid iTune cards.

Good idea to routinely change your password which I've done since originally reading this story. I also don't keep a credit card on file with iTunes.

a little OT: does anyone else get that '8 page new contract must agree to' link each and every time I need to put my password in?

[1492]

Unfortunately, this is nothing new, and was reported last year by Chinese Global Times that 50,000 iTunes accounts had been hacked and being sold on a popular Chinese auction site Taobao. I actually scanned the site and found a number of listings for iTune accounts for sale. Most involved accounts with prepaid iTune cards.

Good idea to routinely change your password which I've done since originally reading this story. I also don't keep a credit card on file with iTunes.

[paulcardoza]

APPLE is no different than any other online account you may have. Be very careful to set up the account with the most secure password possible. Combinations of numbers/letters/CAPS/lowercase & special characters makes it extremely difficult for hackers. It's those who:

1. use simple and short passwords
2. use the same password EVERYWHERE
3. never change passwords

who are most at risk. Unfortunately, too often people have that "It'll never happen to me" mentality.

Be serious about password protection and pay attention to your bank and CC accounts on a regular basis.

[Happy_Camper200]

Yep had the same thing happen to me a few weeks ago. I got a receipt from Apple itunes showing about 8 items that were purchased. Like bucky, Apple was very profesional about the whole thing and it was cleard up within hours. Some of the receipts were in Japenese. Who knows what they said!

[rockhillmanor]

IMHO do NOT give your card for "auto debit" to pay any bills.

This is where the trouble lies. With the onset of bill paying on line it is so simple to just go on line and pay them monthly. This way 'you' have to enter all the personal info manually and after the transaction it is not stored on their server with ALL your info intact.

When I signed on for a sprint account the Sprint store strongly suggested I do NOT sign up for auto debit. That should tell you something!

UHaul rental is the biggest offender. I rented a truck. The card is swiped for the one time transaction, no info should be stored. Unknowingly to the public UHaul automatically takes all your card info and stores it available for anyone working at Uhaul to use it. In my case they did, which is how I discovered their practice.

I've been on the phone with them for 6 months, its built into their system. Even if you make the darn clerk delete it from the on line reciept.....you can go to the next UHAUL seven states away and they have it on file and don't even ask you for your card for your purchase, they push a button and your card is charged!!

As these hackers get better and criminal employees seeing how easy it is to steal, I see big problems coming down the pike with using debit cards and credit cards on line. Or in my case using it for any purchase from a company.:(

[naturist]

The bad guys are getting better and better at breaking into password protected accounts. Apple's iTunes and App stores are a rather large target, and certain to attract much more attention than most of the other vendors from which you buy things online.

One of the really big problems is the use of easily guessed passwords. People use them because they can remember them, but they make your accounts vulnerable. I know how frustrating it can be to try to get passwords all squared away, but it is important, especially for sites with high profiles, which are going to attract all kinds of attempts to break in. But if you use a guessable password, sooner or later one of the nogoodniks will discover it.

I highly recommend using one of the password managers that make your passwords instantly available on your computer. This allows you to use strong passwords without having to remember them. And it reduces your risk to the theft of your computer or the hacking into it, risks smaller and easier for you to control. This also requires you to make sure your anti-virus software is up to date at all times, not a bad idea in itself.

I don't know how the OPs account was breached, although the odds are somebody guessed his password. But yes, you do need to pay attention to your credit card statements. A couple years ago I found a charge on mine I didn't recognize, and upon investigation found that somebody had somehow managed to charge something to a credit card number I'd had ten years earlier. Of course, that number had been changed/upgraded, but somehow "the system" decided it was still mine, and tried to apply it to my current account. The credit card company was quick to remove it, but only after I called them on it.

It is important for everyone to be vigilant. Your credit card bills, even your phone bill, are all vulnerable to all manner of scams. You need to check each of them every month, and if you see a charge you don't recognize, call them and inquire. You might have forgotten a legit charge, but you might also be saving yourself from a scam. And of course, if you don't nip it in the bud, you can count of the number of fraudulent charges multiplying each month until you do call them.