Pippa Middleton iCloud photo hack – how did it happen and how to keep your pictures safe
PIPPA Middleton’s iCloud account was hacked for 3,000 private photographs – including some snaps of Prince George and Princess Charlotte.
Nathan Wyatt, 25, has been released on bail after he was quizzed by cops over the weekend.
The Sun revealed on Saturday how 3,000 photographs were stolen from Pippa’s iCloud account and offered for sale by someone demanding £50,000 within 48 hours.
It included shots of her sister the Duchess of Cambridge’s children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte.
The images also included Pippa at a wedding dress fitting and a nude pic of her fiance, James Matthews.
iPhone users are now worried that their private and intimate pictures will end up in the wrong hands.
We reveal simple tips that will help keep your photos private and block hackers from accessing information on iCloud…
What is Apple iCloud?
The feature is a cloud service that was introduced by Apple in 2011 to offer a wireless free backup service for all device users.
As of February this year, the service had a staggering 782 million users.
Anyone who has an iCloud account is able to access their documents, images and files already stored within the cloud on various devices using an Apple ID.
How can this happen?
Your iCloud comes with a Find my iPhone/iPad/Mac feature, which remotely locks it or completely wipes its content.
However, hackers can use this feature to lock you out of your own computer or phone.
They can also keep using the same passwords over and over to access accounts so you should always make sure you keep changing them.
Although it is not yet clear how the Pippa hacker accessed her account, there a number of ways someone can target an iCloud user and access their private information.
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Pictures are also automatically uploaded to iCloud because if Apple’s Photo Stream feature so if a hacker does breach an account, there are hundreds of private snaps to plunder.
How have Apple protected user data?
In 2014, Apple said it had expanded its use of “two-step verification” checks to protect data stored on its iCloud servers.
The process works by introducing an extra step after an account holder has typed their username and password into a device they have not used before.
They are also required to enter a code that is either texted to a trusted mobile phone number or sent via Apple’s Find My iPhone app.
If the person does not enter the code, they are refused access to iCloud and are blocked from making an iTunes, iBooks, or App Store purchase.
HOW TO PROTECT YOUR PERSONAL DATA ON iCLOUD
Choose a password with a combination of letters and numbers to make it harder for hackers to access information.
Also make sure you use the two-step verification, which combines your password with a pin number either sent to your phone in a text, or created by an app on your phone.
Add a second “rescue” email to your account, so if a hacker does take over your primary email, you can regain control over your Apple ID and iCloud account.
Stop pictures automatically uploading to iCloud by turning off Photo Stream via Settings menu.
When deleting a picture, check all your phones and tablets synced with your iCloud, as snaps may also appear in their photo stream.
Keeping your iPhone up to date can help protect it too as hackers will find it more difficult to find flaws in Apple’s coding in newer iOS updates.
Auto-wipe iPhone content by selecting ‘Erase Data’ in settings. The feature will automatically wipe all content after ten incorrect password guesses but we wouldn’t recommend this if you’re not always great at getting the information right!