Hacker claims to have found new security flaw with Apple's iPhone

 SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- A hacker¹ on Friday revealed a security flaw that he claimed could make Apple's iPhone particularly vulnerable to text message cheating.

The flaw has existed since iPhone was first launched in 2007, and is still not solved in the beta version of iOS 6, the next operating system for iPhone, the hacker under the name "Pod2g" said in a blog post.

Under the protocols² handling the exchange of SMS (Short Message Service) text between mobile phones, the sender of a message can technically³ change the reply-to phone number to something different from the original number, Pod2g explained.

In a good implementation⁴, the receiver of the message would see both the original phone number and the reply-to one.

But using iPhone's SMS feature, when receivers see the message, it seems to come from the reply-to number, while the original phone number of the sender is hidden.

The loophole means that someone could send iPhone users messages pretending to be from the receivers' banks or other trusted sources, asking for some private information, or cheating them to go to a dedicated⁵ website to obtain users' information.

Pod2g called the security flaw "severe" and urged Apple to fix it before the final release of the iOS 6 software.

"Now you are alerted. Never trust any SMS you received on your iPhone at first sight," Pod2g wrote in the blog post.

Apple Inc. could not be reached for comments.

1 hacker   

n.能盗用或偷改电脑中信息的人，电脑黑客

参考例句：

• The computer hacker wrote that he was from Russia.这个计算机黑客自称他来自俄罗斯。
• This site was attacked by a hacker last week.上周这个网站被黑客攻击了。

2 protocols   

n.礼仪( protocol的名词复数 )；（外交条约的）草案；（数据传递的）协议；科学实验报告（或计划）

参考例句：

• There are also protocols on the testing of nuclear weapons. 也有关于核武器试验的协议。 来自辞典例句
• Hardware components and software design of network transport protocols are separately introduced. 介绍系统硬件组成及网络传输协议的软件设计。 来自互联网

3 technically   

adv.专门地，技术上地

参考例句：

• Technically it is the most advanced equipment ever.从技术上说，这是最先进的设备。
• The tomato is technically a fruit,although it is eaten as a vegetable.严格地说，西红柿是一种水果，尽管它是当作蔬菜吃的。

4 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

5 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。