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Thursday, November 24, 2011, 07:33 pm
Briefly: Thanksgiving malware, international iPhone 4S launches, new iPod touch ad
New iTunes gift certificate scam takes advantage of eager Black Friday shoppers, iPhone 4S to launch tomorrow in Colombia and India and December in Russia, while Apple releases its latest iPod touch TV commercial.New malware phishes with fake iTunes gift certificate
As the holiday shopping season picks up, so do the number of phishing schemes preying on cash-strapped shoppers, the latest being a U.S.-targeted Black Friday email scam offering a fake $50 gift card from iTunes, according to the German language internet security blog Eleven.
Affected users receive an email claiming to be from Apple's iTunes store, and are instructed to open an attachment that supposedly contains a certificate redemption code. The attached ZIP file is actually the malware Mal/BredoZp-B, which opens a backdoor on the affected computer allowing the software to pilfer passwords and other sensitive information.
Colombia and India to get iPhone 4S tomorrow, Russia in mid-December
Colombia and India will be the next two countries to launch the iPhone 4S in Apple's continued worldwide rollout, while Russia joins Taiwan in an expected mid-December debut.
The device is expected to go on sale in Colombia on Thursday at midnight and will be carried by local telecoms Movistar, Comcel and Tigo, according to Spanish language publication Elespectador.
Although a media release from Movistar was first to announce the Colombian launch time, no carrier has revealed a price for Apple's newest handset.
As reported by AppleInsider, India is also expected begin 4S sales tomorrow, with Airtel and Aircel both carrying the device at unsubsidized prices. Due to the popularity of pre-paid plans in the world's most populated country, many phones are sold unlocked and are subsequently more expensive than on-contract devices.
However, Aircel announced through Twitter that it will be offering the iPhone 4S in a bundled tariff plan that allows users to save money over a period of two years.
Russia will reportedly join Taiwan in a mid-December launch, with major Russian cell phone retailer Euroset saying that the device will go on sale between Dec. 5 and Dec.21, according to Prime Business News Agency.
New iPod touch commercial
Apple's latest iPod touch advertisement focuses on the new white model, which was announced alongside the iPhone 4S in early October, and highlights iOS 5 features like Facetime, iMessenger and integrated Twitter capabilities.
On Topic: General
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- Steve Jobs's family has been giving money away anonymously for more than 2 decades
- Judge says evidence will likely show Apple culpable in e-book price fixing case
Previous Comments View All
Quote:
Originally Posted by Apple ][ 
I outsourced my Thanksgiving meal today and enjoyed some spicy Indian food, I'm not too crazy about turkey.
I outsourced my Thanksgiving meal today and enjoyed some spicy Indian food, I'm not too crazy about turkey.
Weren't you just talking about bringing jobs back to America and you decided to eat outsourced cuisine instead of locally produced cuisine?
Love the new ad. Contrast that to the new Samsung ad poking fun at iPhone users. Not that I can't be poked fun at, but this ad is definitely more likely to get people to part with their money. Funky, youthful, retro and clever.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SolipsismX
Weren't you just talking about bringing jobs back to America and you decided to eat outsourced cuisine instead of locally produced cuisine?
Weren't you just talking about bringing jobs back to America and you decided to eat outsourced cuisine instead of locally produced cuisine?
I am the one who is fine with Apple products being made in China, because I recognize that there is no way that the products can be made in the USA. So, I was actually arguing the opposite.
As for outsourcing my Thanksgiving meal, the people who made it and the people who own the restaurant might be Indian, but I'm pretty sure that they are also American since they live here. So, I wasn't really outsourcing it to a foreign country. My Indian meal was locally made.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Apple ][
I am the one who is fine with Apple products being made in China, because I recognize that there is no way that the products can be made in the USA. So, I was actually arguing the opposite.
I am the one who is fine with Apple products being made in China, because I recognize that there is no way that the products can be made in the USA. So, I was actually arguing the opposite.
Mea culpa.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Apple ][
Happy Thanksgiving to those who are worthy! I outsourced my Thanksgiving meal today and enjoyed some spicy Indian food, I'm not too crazy about turkey.
As for this malware, it's nothing to worry about. It doesn't affect Mac users at all. It's an exe file, so only Windows users are at risk.
It's also hilarious, because that is one amateurish email/malware. There are plenty of giveaways that it's not coming from Apple. Only the dumbest of the dumb could ever fall for this scam.
First of all, Apple would never be sending out any free $50 gift cards to random people.
Happy Thanksgiving to those who are worthy! I outsourced my Thanksgiving meal today and enjoyed some spicy Indian food, I'm not too crazy about turkey.
As for this malware, it's nothing to worry about. It doesn't affect Mac users at all. It's an exe file, so only Windows users are at risk.
It's also hilarious, because that is one amateurish email/malware. There are plenty of giveaways that it's not coming from Apple. Only the dumbest of the dumb could ever fall for this scam.
First of all, Apple would never be sending out any free $50 gift cards to random people.
Not to mention if Apple sent it they would have your Apple ID and would have applied the funds to your account already. And the email would be just to let you know that someone sent you a gift credit.
Quote:
Originally Posted by charlituna
Not to mention if Apple sent it they would have your Apple ID and would have applied the funds to your account already. And the email would be just to let you know that someone sent you a gift credit.
Not to mention if Apple sent it they would have your Apple ID and would have applied the funds to your account already. And the email would be just to let you know that someone sent you a gift credit.
I suspect most Apple users would not know that.
Actually, about Apple in India, I think I was unfairly blaming Apple for not showing interest in the Indian market. 2 big reasons that cripple Apple in India are:
1. So far the Government never allowed Foreign retailers to setup shop in India without a collaboration. No 100% foreign owned retail chain was allowed. That explains why Walmart, etc., have not setup shop.
2. Import Duties are pretty high - almost 30% in cases, which explains why the Apple products are priced almost 30% of what it is in the US.
The good news is that the Govt. has now decided to allow for foreign retail chains, so it looks like the ball is now in Apple's court! I am not sure what the regulations are with respect to e-commerce so not sure how it will affect Apple's online store. I hope it is possible as well.
I had also felt that if Apple could negotiate with record companies in India to provide film music online. With a lot of players, I guess it would take a while, but it is possible. Nokia used to have the option of downloading songs and even cellular service providers have their own legal online music and movie stores. I am sure Apple could look into it.
Hopefully the new Govt. decision should allow Apple to go after the other 95% here in India.
Quote:
Originally Posted by charlituna
Not to mention if Apple sent it they would have your Apple ID and would have applied the funds to your account already. And the email would be just to let you know that someone sent you a gift credit.
Not to mention if Apple sent it they would have your Apple ID and would have applied the funds to your account already. And the email would be just to let you know that someone sent you a gift credit.
No doubt.
One time, I had downloaded a few TV episodes from iTunes that had mismatched audio. I complained, and they responded by saying the fixed episodes have been downloaded to my computer. They PUT them on my computer while I was at work! Scary thought, but cool at the same time, and the $5 credit they applied to my account didn't hurt either.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Apple ][
The email contains no graphics. It's also written by an illiterate moron or a foreign crook who can't properly communicate using the English language. Apple would never send such a poorly written email. The idiot who wrote the email probably spends their other time writing Nigerian scam emails.
The email contains no graphics. It's also written by an illiterate moron or a foreign crook who can't properly communicate using the English language. Apple would never send such a poorly written email. The idiot who wrote the email probably spends their other time writing Nigerian scam emails.
I was under the impression that they're purposely written that way ( i.e. misspelled words) so as to fool spam filters keyed to look for certain word combinations. Not that that really works... maybe I'm giving them too much credit.
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Happy Thanksgiving to those who are worthy! I outsourced my Thanksgiving meal today and enjoyed some spicy Indian food, I'm not too crazy about turkey.
As for this malware, it's nothing to worry about. It doesn't affect Mac users at all. It's an exe file, so only Windows users are at risk.
It's also hilarious, because that is one amateurish email/malware. There are plenty of giveaways that it's not coming from Apple. Only the dumbest of the dumb could ever fall for this scam.
First of all, Apple would never be sending out any free $50 gift cards to random people.
The email contains no graphics. It's also written by an illiterate moron or a foreign crook who can't properly communicate using the English language. Apple would never send such a poorly written email. The idiot who wrote the email probably spends their other time writing Nigerian scam emails.