Apple Couldn’t Help A User As Hacker Changed Linked Phone Number

Cupertino-based tech giant Apple often claims how secure its iPhones are. However, this doesn’t stop hackers from accessing users’ Apple IDs, giving them access to their iCloud and other related services. More recently, something similar happened with Packy McCormick, an advisor to the Andreessen Horowitz firm. McCormick’s Apple ID was hacked and when he asked Apple for help, support staff simply said there was nothing they could do to help.

Here is what happened

On November 27, 2023, McCormick viewed his official X account, describing how a hacker accessed his Apple ID and, subsequently, iCloud. It also goes on to say that the hacker changed the account’s phone number, and when McCormick informed Apple Support of this, they simply said that the hacker should not have had the account’s password. Apple ID and that there was nothing he could do once the hackers “changed the number” associated with the account.

Hacker bypassed two-factor authentication to change user’s phone number

The hacker not only managed to enter the password, but also bypassed the two-factor authentication implemented by McCormick, even though the victim claimed to have refused the request by pressing “Do not allow” on his iPhone. For the uninitiated, an Apple ID is tied to a phone number and an email ID, and when someone tries to sign in, they need either of the two details. ‘identification. Then they can gain access by entering the password and passing two-factor authentication, which is supposed to prevent unauthorized access.

Therefore, it is unclear how the hacker entered the password correctly and then managed to change the number linked to the Apple ID. It is important to mention that this is not the first time that Apple has refused support in such cases. Several users have been turning to social networks and microblogging platforms for years, posting messages reporting the same problems. However, it’s surprising that Apple hasn’t done anything yet.

Is there any way to avoid this?

While there is no surefire way to prevent this from happening, users could benefit from using a lesser-known phone number and email ID to create an Apple ID because hackers can easily access publicly available information. Enabling two-factor authentication is often considered great from a security perspective, but it doesn’t seem to help users in this case. Some users suggest using Google Photos to store personal photos and videos instead of iCloud because it is not directly linked to Apple ID, thus avoiding unwanted access.

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