The results from the CanSecWest Pwn2Own competition are in. Despite the $20,000 prize offered up by Google, Chrome still remains unscathed. Safari was hacked in a matter of seconds, and Internet Explorer 8 was hacked using a combination of 3 different vulnerabilities. Apple’s iPhone was fell victim, and before the day was over, Mozilla’s Firefox browser was also slain.
Hackers of the web browsers received prizes of $10,000 per team or individual. Halvar Flake and two friends were responsible for breaking into the iPhone and retrieving full SMS history (included deleted messages) and contacts information, their work earned them a hefty $15,000.
Chrome might have been the winner of this match, but it was also the only browser that was left completely untouched. Nobody even attempted to hack Chrome this year! Initially there were 2 teams initially signed up for the task, but they either got cold feet or changed to an easier target before the contest began. It seems Google’s security proved the greatest challenge, as Android was not hacked into either.
The hacking contest runs March 9 to the 11th, so we’ll see if any more hacks come through on the final day this Friday.
via [TheRegister]
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Koutheir Attouchi
Nothing made by human beings is unhackable. It’s only harder to hack.
Yet, I am happy to hear that being a user of an Android phone.
grooveDexter
@Koutheir, Great point! If it was made by humans, it can be hacked by humans. Android and Chrome are safe mostly because they aren’t targeted as much as more popular systems. It’s the same reason Opera users don’ t need to worry about exploits, there isn’t enough of a market share for hackers to go after it. But, that is changing with Android – it has already passed up the iPhone in sales.
Koutheir Attouchi
This is exactly what made me install an Antivirus and a Firewall on my Android since months. I am only trying to make it harder for hackers to take control over my phone and/or my data.
Jaume
Nope my chrome using netbook bite the dust after a homepage changer malware invaded it , heck even my desktop running Linux got affected