iPhone’s Citi Mobile App Not Secure, Users Urged to Upgrade
7/28/2010 09:13:00 PM - 0 comments
Citi Mobile App users be warned! Citigroup recently admitted that its free iPhone app Citi Mobile is not secure due to a major flaw. The application “accidentally” saves the personal account information of its users in a hidden file on the phone. Information stored in the file could include users’ account numbers, bill payments and security access codes.
It is also feared that these information may have been stored in a user’s personal computer if it is synched with an iPhone. With this in mind, hackers could likely get their hands into these details thus compromising customers’ accounts.
The Wall Street Journal reported that this free app, ranked as the 11th most popular app in the finance category, has likely affected around 117,600 members out of an estimated 800,000 Citibank mobile customers.
Citi, however, assures its customers that no evidence shows that account information has been accessed by hackers. Natalie Riper, a Citibank spokesperson, said: “We have no reason to believe that our customers’ personal information has been accessed or used inappropriately by anyone, i.e., there has been no data breach.”
Citi claims that they have already fixed the security flaw and has immediately informed its customers within 24 hours after the problem was discovered. The company also sent out letters to its customers on July 20th. They have also already rolled out an updated version of the app and are now calling on its customers to immediately upgrade.
Citi assured customers that the updated version of the app erases previously stored information. It has been listed as a ‘mandatory’ update on the app store. The upgrade also aims to eliminate the possibility of the problem resurfacing in the future.
The application was initially introduced in March 2009. Since then, it has undergone three other revisions. It is not clear though whether the security breach was present in all versions.
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