AirDrop lets Apple users who are near each other share files using a proprietary mix of Bluetooth and other wireless connectivity without having to connect to the internet. A Chinese tech firm, Beijing-based Wangshendongjian Technology, was able to compromise AirDrop to identify users on the Beijing subway accused of sharing “inappropriate information,” judicial authorities in Beijing said this week. One of the researchers, Milan Stute, shared an email with CNN showing a representative of Apple’s product security team acknowledging the researchers’ report in 2019. The Chinese tech firm, Wangshendongjian Technology, that claimed to have exploited AirDrop appeared to have used some of the same techniques first identified by the Darmstadt researchers in 2019, said Alexander Heinrich, one of the German researchers. “Now that Chinese security agencies are exploiting this vulnerability, it’s a tough political problem for Apple.”The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros.

Source: CNN January 12, 2024 18:10 UTC