iPhone Face ID Vulnerability Raises Concerns Over Potential Financial Risks for Users

Android users have been worried about malware threats for years and now iPhone users have similar concerns that are capable of stealing personal data and even their money. The iOS Trojan malware is allegedly designed to gain device access and be able to read messages and other confidential items.

A Trojan called GoldPickaxe.iOS has been identified by Group IB's Threat Intelligence Unit and the threat has been attributed to a Chinese-speaking threat actor codenamed Goldfactory. The biggest red flag about this Trojan and malicious actor is that the attacks are carried out using AI deepfakes, which means fooling Apple's Face ID tech to impersonate the owner of the device.

The main aim of the Trojan is to steal money and the main alarm for the Group IB team is that the Trojan is present since June 2023 and is still out there causing problems.

The agency points out that Goldfactory is targeting iPhone users in the Asia-Pacific region, where bad actors are operating under the guise of banks and government organizations in Thailand and Vietnam. It is certainly a concern that the Trojan spreads its wings to target people in other parts of the world, which can be devastating and difficult to contain.

The biggest challenge for Group IB is that hackers can penetrate Apple's closed security protocols and bypass all layers to not only infiltrate the device but steal data without alerting the user.

And before Trojans become a global concern, it is advised that mobile users should not install apps from links or mails shared by unknown contacts. Likewise, it is advised not to install apps from Apple's app testing platform TestFlight.

iPhone users have better control over their device's security so it should be easy to avoid these massive Trojan attacks.