Bitcoin said in a statement on Sunday that the component of Android responsible for generating secure random numbers “contains critical weaknesses, that render all Android wallets generated to date vulnerable to theft.”
It said any wallet app generated by Android, including Bitcoin Wallet, blockchain.info, BitcoinSpinner and Mycelium, could be open to attack.
Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer digital currency which can be used to purchase real-world as well as online goods and services. Bitcoins are "mined" by peers in the Bitcoin network, which authenticates and records every transaction made in the currency, avoiding the need for a central regulator.
Bitcoin said secure updates for the affected applications were currently being developed and advised users to upgrade to the latest versions available in the Google Play Store as soon as they are released.
Users of Android Bitcoin apps should create a new, secure address and send any money in their current wallet back to themselves, they added.
The group did not indicate the total value of the currency which may have been taken.
This is not the first time Bitcoin wallet providers have been exposed to threat. In April this year, hackers targeted the web-based Instawallet, stealing more than 35,000 bitcoins.
Last September, the Bitcoin exchange Bitfloor was also targeted, with 24,000 units – then the equivalent of $250,000 (£158,000) – being stolen.
The problem currently affecting Android apps, where private keys can be recovered if random numbers are used twice, was identified by one blogger as early as January.
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Articles on the BitCoin Bug:
Bitcoin for Android hit by bug - Telegraph
Attackers exploit Android bugs to steal Bitcoins from "wallet" apps - SC Magazine
Android bug batters Bitcoin wallets ? The Register
Android Bug Creates Weakness In Virtually All Bitcoin Wallet Apps, Money Vulnerable To Theft
Bug Is Swiping Android Users' Bitcoins - As New York probes virtual-currency firms' practices
BBC News - Bitcoins at risk of theft on flawed Android apps
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It said any wallet app generated by Android, including Bitcoin Wallet, blockchain.info, BitcoinSpinner and Mycelium, could be open to attack.
Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer digital currency which can be used to purchase real-world as well as online goods and services. Bitcoins are "mined" by peers in the Bitcoin network, which authenticates and records every transaction made in the currency, avoiding the need for a central regulator.
Bitcoin said secure updates for the affected applications were currently being developed and advised users to upgrade to the latest versions available in the Google Play Store as soon as they are released.
Users of Android Bitcoin apps should create a new, secure address and send any money in their current wallet back to themselves, they added.
The group did not indicate the total value of the currency which may have been taken.
This is not the first time Bitcoin wallet providers have been exposed to threat. In April this year, hackers targeted the web-based Instawallet, stealing more than 35,000 bitcoins.
Last September, the Bitcoin exchange Bitfloor was also targeted, with 24,000 units – then the equivalent of $250,000 (£158,000) – being stolen.
The problem currently affecting Android apps, where private keys can be recovered if random numbers are used twice, was identified by one blogger as early as January.
___________________________________________________________________
Articles on the BitCoin Bug:
Bitcoin for Android hit by bug - Telegraph
Attackers exploit Android bugs to steal Bitcoins from "wallet" apps - SC Magazine
Android bug batters Bitcoin wallets ? The Register
Android Bug Creates Weakness In Virtually All Bitcoin Wallet Apps, Money Vulnerable To Theft
Bug Is Swiping Android Users' Bitcoins - As New York probes virtual-currency firms' practices
BBC News - Bitcoins at risk of theft on flawed Android apps
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The BitCoin Prophecy posted by To0 @ WJunction.com on 6/18/2013
Read It today: http://www.wjunction.com/135-other/174858-bitcoin-prophecy.html
Read It today: http://www.wjunction.com/135-other/174858-bitcoin-prophecy.html
