Apple announced its new products yesterday, and following the event, new video content surfaced on Apple’s YouTube channel. The company shared iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Pro, and Watch Series 9 promo videos for us to check out.
The iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Pro & Watch Series 9 promo videos are official
All three of these videos start with the word ‘Introducing’, and they’re exactly what you think they are. Let’s start with the iPhone 15 video, the shortest of them all.
This video highlights the phone’s changed design with a Dynamic Island cutout. It also highlights the fact the phones (iPhone 15 and 15 Plus) are water resistant, while there’s some focus on the camera too.
As a reminder, the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus have an upgraded 48-megapixel camera now. Apple also highlights “all-day battery life”, and that’s pretty much it.
The second video is about the iPhone 15 Pro series. This one is the longest of them all, at over 4 minutes. That’s mainly because there’s a lot to talk about here, and this video is far more cinematic.
The first feature that is highlighted here is the build. Both iPhone 15 Pro models are made out of titanium. The video prowess of the two devices is also highlighted here, of course, as are the phone’s four different colors.
Apple also highlighted its new Apple A17 Pro SoC in this video
Apple also set aside some time to promote its new Apple A17 Pro processor, Type-C USB port, and an Action Button which is here to replace the mute switch.
There’s a whole section dedicated to cameras in this video too, which was to be expected. The iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max bring a number of camera improvements, and the Pro Max model even has a periscope camera this time around.
The last video is about the Apple Watch Series 9. That video has a duration of around 1 minute, and it highlights Apple’s new gesture for answering calls, and various different actions. That’s pretty much it.
It is also worth noting that Apple did push out a 1-minute promo video for the AirPods Pro too. They now support a Type-C USB port too, just like the new iPhones. You can check out that video below.
Threat actors were using Windows Arbitrary File Deletion to perform Denial-of-service attacks on systems affected by this vulnerability. However, recent reports indicate that this Windows Arbitrary file deletion can be used for a full compromise.
The possibility of this attack depends on the CVE-2023-27470 arbitrary file deletion vulnerability combining it with a Time-of-Check to Time-of-Use (TOCTOU) race condition, which enables the deletion of files on a Windows system and subsequently creates an elevated Command Prompt.
CVE-2023-27470 & TOCTOU – Technical Analysis
CVE-2023-27470 affects N-Able’s Take Control Agent, which can lead to an arbitrary file deletion vulnerability. This vulnerability analysis was done using Microsoft’s Process Monitor, often called ProcMon.
This vulnerability exists due to insecure file operations conducted by NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM processes that were detected with the help of ProcMon filters.
The process that was analyzed during this vulnerability was BASupSrvcUpdater.exe, belonging to Take Control Agent 7.0.41.1141.
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Race Condition
BASupSrvcUpdater.exe attempts every 30 seconds to a non-existent folder under the C:\ProgramData\GetSupportService_N-Central\PushUpdates as an NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM process. For further research, this PushUpdates folder and a dummy file aaa.txt were created.
BASupSrvcUpdater.exe made an attempt to read the contents of the folder and performed a deletion, which was logged in the C:\ProgramData\GetSupportService_N-Central\Logs\BASupSrvcUpdater_[DATE].log log file.
This particular action gives rise to a race condition, as a threat actor can exploit this condition by utilizing the timeframe between the deletion and logging.
To exploit this condition and perform a full system compromise, an attacker must replace a file in the PushUpdates folder with a pseudo-symlink.
A complete report about this attack has been published, which provides detailed information about the exploitation, techniques, process, and method of complete system compromise.
To prevent this attack, it is recommended for organizations using N-able to upgrade to version 7.0.43 to fix this vulnerability.
Along with the new iPhone 15 being announced today, Smartish has also announced its lineup of cases and accessories for the new iPhone. It includes some new styles and prints, and of course, MagSafe.
Smartish has the new Gripmunk case which is compatible with MagSafe. This case is a stunning looking one, with some pretty interesting prints. It’s available for $19.99 (or $14.99 if you don’t want/need MagSafe) and comes in Black Tie Affair, Blues on the Green, So Jaded, Leaf Me Alone, Very Cherry Blossom and Moving Mountains.
Next up is the Gripzilla case from Smartish which as you might expect, has some extra grip on the sides. This one is really unique and cool looking. It is also durable, and rated for 50 drops at 6-feet. So if you’re one that is a bit clumsy, you’ll be covered here. This case is priced at $29.99, and comes in Black Tie Affair, Gray Area, Spaced Out, Graspin’ Aspen, Blueberry Bandit and Lost in the Moss.
Smartish also has a nice wallet case available for the iPhone 15 series, in the Wallet Slayer Vol. 1. This is a case that has room for three cards, plus cash. So you can take your cards that are not supported by Apple Pay, and never have to bring your wallet with you again. It comes in Black Tie Affair, Blues on the Green, You’re Just Jelly, Moving Mountains, Graspin’ Aspen, and Very Cherry Blossom and is available for $24.99.
These are just a few of the cases that Smartish has, you can check out the rest of them here.
Smartish also has new USB-C accessories for iPhone 15
On top of the new cases for the iPhone 15, Smartish is also debuting some new accessories for the USB-C iPhone. That includes the Bigger Cable Wrangler, which looks really cool. It’s basically a magnetic pad covered in fabric that will keep your cables where they need to be. Instead of having them dangling around. This costs $39.99 and comes in a few colors: No.2 Pencil Grey, Lightly Toasted Beige, I’m Blushing and Teal Me More.
To help with the transition from Lightning to USB-C, Smartish is debuting the Crown Joule. This is a universal adapter that will work with new and old iPhones, as you’re getting Lightning and USB-C here. It’s available for $14.99 in a number of colors.
According to market research firm Omdia, the global semiconductor industry recorded a 3.8 percent revenue increase in Q2 2023. It’s the first quarterly revenue growth since the year-ending quarter of 2021. The five straight quarters of decline from Q1 2022 to Q1 2023 was the longest such period since the firm began tracking the semiconductor market in 2002.
The prolonged decline for over a year means the current semiconductor market size by revenue is at just 79 percent of what it was in the same period last year. Omdia estimates the global revenue to have crossed $125 billion this past quarter. The total revenue was $160 in Q2 2022. “It will take time to return to the revenue levels of late 2021,” the research firm states. That upward journey may have begun, though.
Nvidia led the semiconductor revenue rebound in Q2 2023
The semiconductor revenue growth rate in Q2 2023 was in line with the historical average of 3.4 percent revenue increase in the second quarter of the year. However, some segments of the industry saw a massive deviation from the historical average this year. The DRAM market, for example, registered a 15 percent revenue increase this past quarter, double the Q2 average of 7.5 percent.
Thanks to the growing AI craze, the revenue from the data processing segment also grew 15 percent in Q2 2023. This segment accounted for almost one-third of the global semiconductor revenue (31 percent), the largest share of all market segments. The smartphone/wireless sector was the second-largest contributor to the global revenue. However, a decline in smartphone sales means revenue from the wireless segment declined three percent. The automotive semiconductor sector registered a 3.2 percent revenue growth this past quarter.
Omdia says Nvidia led the long-missing semiconductor revenue rebound. The American company contributed to a whopping 54 percent of the total revenue increase ($2.5 billion of $4.6 billion) between April and June 2023. It has climbed up to the third spot in the global semiconductor ranking by revenue, behind Intel and Samsung. This is quite a turnaround from Nvidia after dropping to the tenth spot in the third quarter of last year. Intel and Samsung have held the top two spots for a long time now, occasionally switching positions between themselves.
However, Nvidia is catching up to them fast. It registered a 47.5 percent quarterly revenue increase in Q2 2023, reaching $7.9 billion. Intel’s revenue grew 10.1 percent to reach $12.3 billion, while Samsung recorded a 5.8 percent growth for a total revenue of $9.4 billion. Qualcomm and Broadcom were the next two biggest semiconductor companies by revenue this past quarter. However, they both suffered a quarterly decline, allowing SK Hynix to close the gap with a 39.9 percent increase. You can see the full chart below.
The iPhone 15 series is now official. So now, the next question is, when can you pre-order it? Well, the timeline is the same as it is every other year.
Pre-orders will start this Friday, September 15, 2023. Pre-orders will start at 8AM ET on that date, and the devices will start shipping the following Friday on September 22, 2023. It’s likely that some of these models might suffer big setbacks in terms of shipping, due to the supply chain. So if you need your new iPhone as soon as possible, you will want to pre-order at 8AM sharp.
You’ll be able to pre-order the iPhone 15 from Apple, AT&T, Best Buy, T-Mobile, Verizon and many other locations. We don’t yet have any details on deals that the carriers will offer for the iPhone 15, those will likely come on Thursday ahead of the iPhone 15 pre-orders starting. But expect some pretty big deals, like trading in your phone and getting a free iPhone 15. Among other things.
Should I pre-order the iPhone 15?
Smartphones have matured these days, so the generation-to-generation changes are not that big, as they were about a decade ago. Even in the Android world, the changes from Pixel 6 to Pixel 7 weren’t that big. And we’re expecting the same for Pixel 7 to Pixel 8. So if you have an iPhone 14 series, it’s probably not worth it to upgrade, unless you’re on Apple’s iPhone Upgrade program.
Now, if you are on an older iPhone, like an iPhone 12 or even an iPhone 11, then this is going to be a huge upgrade for you, and definitely worthwhile. A little less worthwhile if you’re on an iPhone 13 series. Don’t forget that the iPhone 15 is going to force you to get new cables, since it is USB-C this year. And it does also sport larger batteries, so the battery life should be exponentially better this year.
If you’re into the Apple ecosystem of products, then you undoubtedly have some data stored onto the company’s iCloud cloud server. Paying customers have had different cloud storage options for years, and now, there are more options to choose from. Apple just unveiled some new iCloud storage tiers for its customers.
Today, Apple just had its biggest event of the year. During this event, it unveiled the new iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, and iPhone 15 Pro. These are the most powerful iPhones to date, as you can imagine, and they retain the familiar design that iPhone users have loved for the past… well, four years. Regardless, they bring some notable software upgrades and added functionality. You can learn more with your iPhone 15 preview.
Apple unveils new iCloud storage tiers
Most businesses, career-driven individuals, and creators need ample cloud storage space to store all of the files that they create. This is why Apple provides a robust cloud service called iCloud, and you can store your files reliably on Apple’s servers.
As it stands, there are three tiers that you can choose from. The $0.99/month tier gives you 50GB of storage, the $2.99/month tier gives you 200GB, and the $9.99/month tier gives you 2TB of storage.
By comparison, Google One gives you 100GB ( $1.99/month), 200GB ($2.99/month), 2TB ($9.99/month), and 5TB ($24.99/month). Switching to a yearly plan just multiplies the prices by 10.
So, both companies’ prices are rather comparable. However, Apple is looking to give users more robust options when it comes to payment tiers. According to 9To5Mac. Apple announced a 6TB storage option. This one will cost you $30/month. Lastly, there will also be a new 12TB option that will run you $60/month.
These plans can also be shared with up to six people, and they come with the same features that you get with the other payment plans. Apple is going to launch these new plans starting September 18th.
A major incident impacting MGM Resorts has caused computer shutdowns all over the US. The systems most impacted are tied to casinos and hotel computer systems. According to the AP, locations caught by this shutdown range from New York and Ohio to Michigan and Mississippi.
At this point I’d link to the post on the company website explaining what’s occurred but at time of writing, the site tends to not load properly which is probably due to heavy traffic. When it does, it simply says that the MGM Resorts website is currently unavailable and gives visitors a list of contact numbers. AP also mentions that other MGM websites have been replaced with “back soon” style pages while the clean up from the attack is no doubt still ongoing.
This is what MGM Resorts has to say on the matter:
MGM Resorts recently identified a cybersecurity issue affecting some of the company’s systems. Promptly after detecting the issue, we quickly began an investigation with assistance from leading external cybersecurity experts. We also notified law enforcement and took prompt action to protect our systems and data, including shutting down certain systems. Our investigation is ongoing, and we are working diligently to determine the nature and scope of the matter.
MGM goes on to say that “resorts are fully operational”. Meanwhile, BBC reporter Joe Tidy reports that slot machines and casino floors were left empty, and that physical room keys had to be distributed. An additional admin error caused a guest to walk in on someone else. Clearly things are not going swimmingly for MGM Resorts.
Scene in MGM Grand according to a TikTok user who said slots machines down and casino floor empty after cyber attack. She also says staff had to make and distribute physical room keys and an admin error caused her to walk in on another guest. Source: https://t.co/etNWW0S49ypic.twitter.com/ZgYkv1fD58
Some systems are slowly coming back to life, but there’s no estimate for when full functionality will be restored. The initial fallout of the attack seems to have been the worst of it, with reports of “thousands” of guests locked out of their rooms.
In terms of what the attack could mean for guests, it’s too early to say. MGM has not touched on whether or not customer data has been breached or exfiltrated, and if the culprit is ransomware this could rumble on for days or weeks. Nobody wants to think about their personal data being wrapped up and dropped onto a data dump website, but as with all these incidents it is a distinct possibility. Unverified sources are claiming this to be the case, but we would suggest sticking to official sources only.
If you’re a guest at an MGM resort, don’t panic. Keep note of the contact numbers, and ask staff what the process is for keeping you informed of any breaking developments. An abundance of caution would suggest monitoring credit and debit card payments for a little while, along with watching out for any MGM themed emails. If you do receive the latter, go back to an official point of contact and verify its authenticity. Sometimes organisations send out emails which are genuine, but look suspicious. It’s always better to check.
If this attack does prove to be ransomware, the next development we hear about could be the attackers announcing a data dump or additional demands. For the time being, don’t panic and try to enjoy your resort time as best as you can given the unusual circumstances.
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Today was arguably, Apple’s biggest event of the year – the iPhone event. However, Apple announced more than just iPhones at this event. So in this article, we’re going to round up everything that Apple announced, including some new USB-C accessories.
Apple iPhone 15
First up, we have the new iPhone 15 series. As has been the case for the last few years, there’s four new models here: iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. The entire lineup moved over to USB-C this year. So you’re going to need to buy some new cables this year.
On the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus, Apple brought over the Dynamic Island. So now the notch is gone from all new iPhones. It also brought in the A16 Bionic chipset. Now this might sound familiar, and that’s because it was on the iPhone 14 Pro series last year.
Over to the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. These phones got much bigger updates. Starting with the A17 Pro chipset. Apple appears to be moving away from “Bionic” here, and offering a huge upgrade in terms of performance here. In fact, it’s bringing some console games onto the iPhone. Which is huge news.
Let’s not forget that these are made of Titanium as well. Which makes them more durable, yet lighter. Apple also ditched the mute switch this year, only on the Pro models. And instead is giving us an Action Button, similar to the Apple Watch Ultra. This new button will still work as a mute button, if you press and hold. But you can also use it to do other things, like the flashlight, and even using the Shortcuts app.
The cameras also got a nice upgrade this year, particularly on the Pro Max model. Which now uses a 12-megapixel periscope lens. This is capable of doing 5x optical zoom. On both models, it has adjusted the punch in on the main 48-megapixel sensor, so you’re getting a low more focal lengths on these cameras.
iPhone 15 pre-orders will start on Friday, September 15. The iPhone 15 starts at $799, iPhone 15 Plus at $899. While the iPhone 15 Pro starts at $999 and the iPhone 15 Pro Max at $1,199. The iPhone 15 Pro Max is the only one that starts at 256GB and the only one that got a price increase.
iPhone 15 FineWoven Cases
Apple is ditching all of its Leather products, and instead going with a FineWoven case. Which looks a lot like suede, and actually looks really good. Surprisingly, it’s cheaper than the leather cases were, coming in at $59. For all four iPhone 15 models, they come in five colors: Taupe, Mulberry, Evergreen, Pacific Blue and Black.
Apple says that these cases are made from “durable microtwill, the material has a soft, suede-like feel. The FineWoven material was also designed with the earth in mind – it’s made from 68% post-consumer recycled content and significantly reduces carbon emissions compared to leather.”
iPhone 15 Silicon Cases
Despite many rumors in the past few days of Apple ditching the silicon cases too, they are still here. Coming in at $49 for the iPhone 15 series, they come in eight colors this year: Winter Blue, Orange Sorbet, Cypress, Storm Blue, Guava, Clay, Light Pink, and Black.
Apple Watch Series 9
Next up is the Apple Watch Series 9. The big thing that Apple talked about here is that the Series 9 is now carbon neutral. Thanks to making the casing from 100% recycled materials, as well as remaking the watch bands with recycled materials and also ditching leather. Apple did debut new FineWoven bands for the Apple Watch.
Apple is also debuting its biggest performance boost in years here, with the new S9 SIP. This is going to make the Apple Watch faster and possibly give it better battery life. It has also refreshed the health sensors, which should be more accurate, as well as a new U2 chip for Find My. Apple also upped the peak brightness here to 2,000 nits to match the original Apple Watch Ultra.
Pre-orders for the Apple Watch Series 9 are open right now, starting at $399 for the aluminum and $699 for stainless steel.
Apple Watch Ultra 2
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 still comes in only one color – natural titanium. So those rumors about a space black model appear to have been wrong. Instead, Apple decided to up the screen brightness here, to 3,000 nits peak brightness. Which is just insane. It’s also getting on-device processing for Siri. So you can use Siri even when you are not connected to the internet. Which, if you’re hiking, that might happen rather often.
The Ultra model is made from 95% recycled titanium this year, which is a huge difference from the original Ultra, which was all fresh titanium. Apple has added a new Modular Ultra watch face, which provides a ton of data on the watch face, including the left and right sides. Finally, Apple has also added more Alpine Loop, Trail Loop and Ocean Band colors.
Pre-orders for the Apple Watch Ultra 2 are already available, and will start shipping on September 22. It’s priced at $799.
USB-C AirPods Pro 2 & Earpods
Apple also announced a new version of the Earpods and the AirPods Pro 2. Both now come with USB-C. The AirPods Pro 2 are basically the same as before, but the port has changed over to USB-C. They will cost the same $249, and you will be able to buy just the case. Though that’s not yet appearing on Apple’s website.
The EarPods are essentially what you’d expect. It’s Apple’s wired earbuds now with USB-C. And these cost $19. They are available to buy now, and will be available in store on Friday.
Apple announced a couple of new watches today, as well as the new iPhone 15. And if you’re like me, you might be wondering how much Apple will give you on a trade-in for your old Apple Watch? Well, it’s not much, for the Apple Watch Ultra.
Apple will give me $380 for the Apple Watch Ultra. A watch that cost me $799 a year ago. Not a huge surprise since watches don’t hold their value as long, at least smartwatches don’t. But if you were thinking about upgrading your Watch Ultra to the Ultra 2, it might not be worth it.
Trading in your Apple Watch used to be pretty lucrative during the pandemic, but the values have started to drop a lot quicker recently. However, still getting $380 for a $799 watch is not bad, that’s a little less than half of what you paid for in just under a year. But is it worth upgrading to the Apple Watch Ultra 2?
Should you upgrade to the Apple Watch Ultra 2?
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 does bring along some new upgrades for the watch, but they are pretty few and far between. The biggest visual upgrade we were expecting, did not happen. Apple decided to keep the natural titanium look here. Which, I quite like, though many others were expecting it to be available in black.
Apple did give it a brightness boost on the display. So now it has a peak brightness of 3,000 nits. It is also carbon neutral, as it is made from 95% recycled titanium. Which is a big change from the original Apple Watch Ultra, which was almost all new titanium, not recycled at all.
The company has also debuted some new bands for the Ultra. The Alpine Loop, Trail Loop and Ocean band now come in new colors, and are made from recycled materials as well.
CISA has added two recently discovered Apple vulnerabilities to its catalog of known exploited vulnerabilities.
The Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has added two new vulnerabilities to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, based on evidence of active exploitation. This means that Federal Civilian Executive Branch (FCEB) agencies need to remediate this vulnerability by October 2, 2023 in order to protect their devices against active threats. We urge everyone else to take these seriously too.
Apple released security updates for several products to address these vulnerabilities on September 7, 2023.
An overview of the updates that are available at the time of writing:
The updates may already have reached you in your regular update routines, but it doesn’t hurt to check if your device is at the latest update level. If a Safari update is available for your device, you can get it by updating or upgrading macOS, iOS, or iPadOS.
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) database lists publicly disclosed computer security flaws. The CVEs added to the Catalog of Known Exploited Vulnerabilities are:
CVE-2023-41064: A buffer overflow issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in macOS Monterey 12.6.9, macOS Big Sur 11.7.10, macOS Ventura 13.5.2, iOS 16.6.1 and iPadOS 16.6.1, iOS 15.7.9 and iPadOS 15.7.9. Processing a maliciously crafted image may lead to arbitrary code execution.
A buffer overflow is a type of software vulnerability that exists when an area of memory within a software application reaches its address boundary and writes into an adjacent memory region. In software exploit code, two common areas that are targeted for overflows are the stack and the heap.
The heap is an area of memory made available use by the program. The program can request blocks of memory for its use within the heap. In order to allocate a block of some size, the program makes an explicit request by calling the heap allocation operation.
CVE-2023-41061: A validation issue was addressed with improved logic. This issue is fixed in watchOS 9.6.2, iOS 16.6.1 and iPadOS 16.6.1. A maliciously crafted attachment may result in arbitrary code execution.
At the time of the patches being released, Apple said it was aware of a report that these issues may have been actively exploited.
The vulnerabilities were discovered as zero-days by CitizenLab, while checking the device of an individual employed by a Washington DC-based civil society organization with international offices. Together, these two vulnerabilities were found to be used in an attack chain dubbed BLASTPASS. The exploit chain was capable of compromising iPhones running the latest version of iOS (16.6) without any interaction from the victim and was reportedly used by the NSO Group to deliver the Pegasus spyware.
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