iMessage "Denial of Service" Prank Crashes iOS Messages App

According to the folks over at The Next Web, a recent prank played on a group of iOS developers seems to have revealed a limitation in how Apple handles data sent through its iMessage service, which in some cases can crash the app if the incoming message is too long or contains overly complex characters.

Popular developers such as ih8sn0w and Grant Paul were among those targeted by a specific type of denial of service (DoS) attack that overwhelmed their Messages inboxes with a load of automatically-generated transmissions. The two developers believe the messages that were sent to them via the Messages app on OS X with a simple AppleScript affecting the barrage that prompts a victim to constantly clear notifications and text. According to Paul:
What’s happening is a simple flood: Apple doesn’t seem to limit how fast messages can be sent, so the attacker is able to send thousands of messages very quickly.

The real issue that arises with the attack is with the long and/or complex messages that are received. Depending on what is sent, Messages on iOS can crash because it can’t process and display the massive amount of data correctly. According to the developers, the app will force itself to close and won’t re-open because it can’t properly render the text. As of right now, there isn’t any surefire solution to remedy the crashed Messages app. 

The publication suggests "playing around with sending a regular message, then locking the phone and activating the message notification until you’re able to time it right to delete the message thread that’s causing the problem. One thing to note is that if the attacker gets a hold of a user’s iMessage handle, the only option may be to disable the account temporarily. If a user’s phone number is compromised, iMessage as a whole may have to be turned off.

The identity of the attack behind the attacks remains unknown at the moment but the messages appear to have originated from a Twitter account used to sell UDIDs and provisioning profiles. Disposable email accounts were being used to send the spam, making it difficult to simply block the culprit as they can simply open another and continue to bombard you with messages.

Apple hasn’t responded to the issue just yet but we’re hoping they will soon.

Report: iPhone 5S Coming June 20th

Apple is reportedly in the final stages of making plans to introduce the next-generation iPhone in June.

Reverting back to the days of an early-summer iPhone launch, Apple's 5S model is now poised to be released on June 20, just eight-months after the iPhone 5 was bestowed upon the global marketplace.

Of course, the early launch won't come as a surprise given the huge push that Samsung's new Galaxy S4 is getting today. Understandably,Apple doesn't want to take an extended backseat to Samsung's eagerly anticipated new smartphone.

MacFan, a Japanese Apple fanzine, was first to announce the rumored June date of the next iPhone launch. According to the same report, the iPhone 5S will ship in July. Gene Munster and other leading industry analysts have heard the same chatter out of Asia's supply chain and concur with the rumored June rollout of Apple's refreshed iPhone.

Today's report did not provide any clues as to new hardware attributes or the role iOS 7 could play in the iPhone 5S introduction.

The Next Jailbreak May Come From iOS Hacker p0sixninja

iOS hacker Joshua Hill, better known as p0sixninja and for his efforts in previous jailbreak tools made by the Chronic Dev Team, has announced early Friday morning that the next jailbreak for iOS may be created by him in its entirety.

According to the hacker, he has been busy collecting several exploits over the course of the last few months that could potentially be used for a jailbreak. Hill isn’t specific when he mentions them, but since he says the “next” jailbreak could be created entirely by him, we assume that his exploits are not used in evasi0n and therefore haven’t yet been patched in iOS 6.1.3 like the evasi0n jailbreak has been.

Hill goes on to explain that the evad3rs hacker team isn’t going away. Hill simply appears to be confident enough in his own exploits and expresses that a jailbreak may be able to be produced with them some time in the future. It’s not known if Hill plans to use them for another future iOS 6 release, or if he is going to attempt to wait for iOS 7 to see if they will be of any help.

Whether he chooses to save them for iOS 7 or not, it's still good news to hear that more exploits are being found. We know for a fact that the evad3rs also have a stockpile of exploits and it should be interesting to see if any of them can be used for iOS 7, which we all hope will be followed by a speedy jailbreak release.

Facebook Confirms Major Android Announcement Next Thursday

Will Facebook introduce the long-awaited and widely-rumored "Facebook phone" next Thursday? That's the big scuttlebutt tonight as Facebook has begun sending out media invites to a major press event scheduled for Thursday, April 4th in Menlo Park, California.

Facebook isn't dishing on specifics just yet, but a major Android announcement is indeed on the way.

“Come see our new home on Android,” the invite reads, suggesting either a new Facebook app for Android... or something else.

"Some sources have come forward to say a Facebook Phone is on the horizon," says Brittany Hillen of Slashgear. "The invite is a simple tease – vague title, location, date and time – giving us just enough information to spend the next week guessing. Some sources have surfaced, however, saying that we should expect an operating system."

Plenty of knowledgeable sources believe that Facebook will introduce a modified Android operating system with an HTC handset.

There's a good chance that these and other rumors will be rampant until next week at this time. The only thing we know for sure is that Facebook has something big brewing.

the host -Amazing and underrated,

                                                        
director -andreq niccol
cast - saoirse ronan , max irons
genre -action , adventure , romance , sci-fi , thriller
release date -march 29 , 2013
plot summary-When an unseen enemy threatens mankind by taking over their bodies and erasing their memories, Melanie will risk everything to protect the people she cares most about, proving that love can conquer all in a dangerous new world.

my review -The Host is an amazing movie, full of beautiful cinematography and an internal struggle that is very different to all the other typical paranormal romances that are coming out now. This has a twist to it, and is slightly humorous in a nice way so it isn't all serious. I am not surprised that critics are reviewing it so low, as they usually do with teen romances and Stephenie Meyer. Put those two together and I'm surprised it didn't get a lower review. It makes me resent critics, which is why I prefer audience reviews from the audience it was INTENDED for. I never listened to critics, so coming from someone who has seen the movie twice now, go see it twice if you need, because for some people I know, they needed to see it twice to love it, and for others, it was no problem to wrap their heads around and accept this strange internal struggle. It is worth it, and shows a very interesting movie with a beautiful, non sappy finish. Don't listen to critics! It's a great movie. Brilliant.

G.I. Joe: Retaliation -A typical blockbuster

director-jon m chu
cast - bruce wills , dwayne johnson , channing tatum
genre -action , adventure , sci-fi , thriller
release date - march 28 , 2013
plot summary -The G.I. Joes are not only fighting their mortal enemy Cobra; they are forced to contend with threats from within the government that jeopardize their very existence.

my review-
This film is about the GI Joe's getting ambushed and framed. They fight to get their innocence back and save the world in the process.

"G.I. Joe: Retaliation" has a lot of jaw dropping visual effects. I was truly impressed by the acrobatic action sequence in the snowy mountains, and the destruction of a major city was spine chillingly real. However, the abundance of adrenaline pumping action only serves to disguise the paper thin plot. The plot is contrived and not so believable, and there are many scenes which is bad that it is comedic. A good example is the world leader summit scene where the president says "you, you, you, you, you".

"G.I. Joe: Retaliation" is a typical blockbuster, with loads of explosions, destruction of properties and mindless murders. It is not memorable or mind blowing, but it will still do well in the box office.

A New App Switcher Concept From the Designer of Auxo is Born - it Looks Great!

The designer of Auxo (Sentry_NC) is at it again with yet another App Switcher concept. This new concept calls for the user to drag up from the bottom of the display, similarly to how users do already with Zephyr, to reveal a new card switcher-like interface that allows the user to switch between applications by simply dragging their finger sideways on the application icons at the bottom of the display.