If you have an account on iTunes, you might want to check it more regularly from now on. There have been increasing reports that users of Apple's iTunes service have had their accounts taken over by hackers. In a report on the Global Mail web site this week, it reports that more and more iTunes users have claimed their accounts have been hacked. Many of those users have posted their complaints on Apple's support forums.
The reports claim that users have found their iTunes gift card amounts on their account have suddenly been spent or their PayPal accounts have been used by unknown entities to spend on apps and other products. The iTunes users' complaints sound very similar to what a number of Xbox Live subscribers have been dealing with in the past few months.
Officially Apple's statement to the Global Mail on these reports is as follows:
Apple takes precautions to safeguard your personal information against loss, theft, and misuse, as well as against unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction. Apple online services such as the Apple Online Store and iTunes Store use Secure Sockets Layer encryption on all Web pages where personal information is collected.
That statement is not making people who have had their accounts highjacked feel very well. One forum poster on Apple's message board states, "It is very apparent that Apple iTunes has a big problem on their hands, and they are keeping quiet about it." On the bright side, Apple is reportedly refunding and/or crediting most of the hacked iTunes accounts fairly quickly.
12 Comments - Add comment