iMessage is responsible for 30% of all mobile spam
Apple's iMessage service is responsible for 30% of all mobile spam messages according to anti-spam company Cloudmark. These messages will typically attempt to sell imitation luxury goods such as designer handbags and sunglasses.
By Alex Choros
Apple's iMessage service is responsible for 30% of all mobile spam messages according to anti-spam company Cloudmark. These messages will typically attempt to sell imitation luxury goods such as designer handbags and sunglasses.
iMessage is an attractive prospect for spammer due to the low barriers of entry; all that a spammer requires is an email address. iMessage spam can easily be sent through an iMac or MacBook, meaning that an existing internet connection can be used without the need for mobile data. Tom Landesman, a security researcher at Cloudmark, describes iMessage as a spammer's dream. "With four lines of code, using Apple scripts, you can tell your Mac machine to send message to whoever they want," says Landesman.
iPhone users plagued by spam can disable iMessage by going to the Settings menu, selecting Messages and toggling iMessage to off. Aside from minimising spam, this has the benefit of making it much easier to move to an Android or Windows Phone device, if so desired.
Source: Wired
