XcodeGhost malware updated to target iOS 9

By repackaging Xcode and tricking developers into downloading it, the XcodeGhost malware has infected countless iOS apps. However, after a recent upgrade, it has targeted iOS 9 and more US institutional users. The discovery was disclosed by FireEye researchers, who now call the new version of the malware XcodeGhost S because it can infect the latest iPhone 6s series models.

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FireEye pointed out that the new version of XcodeGhost has been explicitly upgraded to support the new features in iOS 9. At the same time, it also added new mechanisms to avoid being detected.

Specifically, XcodeGhost S has been modified to circumvent the HTTPS communication restriction, a mandatory requirement on iOS 9, which would have blocked transmissions between XcodeGhost and the command and control server (C&C Server).

In addition, in order to avoid being discovered by security tools based on static detection, XcodeGhost has now used a novel technique to cover up its C&C server. Instead of using hard-coded addresses in its code, it uses URLs assembled by characters.

Distribution of organizations affected by XcodeGhost.

FireEye said that at least one new app in the App Store has been infected with XcodeGhost S. The name of this app is "Freedom State". As a shopping app, it is mainly aimed at users in the United States and China, but the company has cooperated with Apple to remove it.

In addition to the new version of XcodeGhost S, FireEye also found that the old version of XcodeGhost has set its sights on American companies. The affected institutions are concentrated in education, high-tech, manufacturing, communications, e-commerce, and finance.

"Although most vendors have updated their apps on the App Store, data suggests that there are still many active users using older, infected versions of the apps, and they are distributed across a variety of domains," the FireEye team concluded.