Inexplicable rise in iPhone dev's App Store sales connected to iTunes account hacks? (update)
By Ross Miller 
posted July 4th 2010 2:01PM
posted July 4th 2010 2:01PM
So, how did these books hit the top of the charts? The other half of this story has to do with a claimed rise in iTunes account hacking, with a number of people reporting up to hundreds of dollars being spent unwillingly from their account to these specific books. Coincidence? Let's not mince words here, something is definitely amiss, and it's not looking good. Just to be safe, might wanna check your purchase history under Apple Account information. We've reached out to Apple and will let you know as soon as we hear back.
Update: We've yet to hear from Apple proper, but we do have an update of sorts -- 9 to 5 Mac reports all the "mycompany" titles have completely vanished from the App Store. We're not sure whether Apple decided to shut down the operation or the seller pulled them himself, so continue to keep an eye on your digital pocketbook until we know for sure.
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Shush Engadget.
@Apple Legal
Apple... hacked?
HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA it's begun
@Apple Legal
Why? Another hit to your rep? Apple is on a roll lately!
@Apple Legal
Nice to see the apple halo slowly being stripped away, their products are good but their attitude stinks... wonder what the spin machine will say this time to save their slowly degrading consumer relationship.
@Apple Legal
Yeah, Stevo is personally cancelling all those cheques you guys get...
@Apple Legal. I blame the Bothan Spies. I bet you those apps are Bothan Spies too
@fpad77 Did anyone else notice all this shit started happening (at least in the publics eyes) right after Apple overtook MS in market value? Maybe the key to success is being in second place, cuz it sure seems like MS is doing a fine job right now, though to be fair that started a few months before they were in second.
@FORDY Stupid Apple! When will they ever learn, that trying to make things they really like, will only invite criticism from the whole world? It's much better to just do exactly what every other company does, and build more ugly buckets of "does". Even if all it really "does" is infuriate all but the most technology invested people. Screw them! They need to stop going outside and having friends and evolve like the rest of us borg!
@okok only Apple Fanboys bought i
These hackers should hack Steve Job's account.
It'll be fun.
@Revolutionary Good news is he's got pleanty of money to buy all those apps... We can get him ALL of them too!
@franktinsley You sound very ignorant. You might want to rethink before you comment, it will help you in life.
@Revolutionary
and apple will blame hackers for recent boy genius claims.
@Revolutionary Stupid Apple and all their fancy pretty crap! Life isn't pretty! Life sucks and is horrible! I hate when stuff tries to not look the way I feel inside! Long live hideous hell-scapes of wires and molded plastic shells!
@codepink Whatever kool-aid drinker Apple pansy! Go suck Job's shiny aluminum dong!
@Revolutionary
"These hackers should hack Steve Job's account."
What account?
Like any good dealer, Steve doesn't use his own product.
If you use Dragon Ball art YOU BLEW IT.
Seems Apple isn't as secure as steve jobs worshipers and fanboys think.
I don't think any of you idiots understand. Apple plays no role in hacking iTunes accounts. Some devs from like Vietnam are hacking or using hacked accounts to purchase their apps. You should use a strong password and not fall into stupid traps. This can happen to any online service anywhere were you have an account.
@Apple Legal
I can already tell you what apple is going to respond.
"It is impossible for iTunes store to be hack, the reasons for those purchases is the quality of the content. We do not make mistakes and you were holding your iPhone wrong when you made the purchases."
@MichaelJJackson
Yes and engadget found out but apple has not? Why have they not made a stamen.
@MichaelJJackson
And who approved those apps? Hmmm
@shadowj0 "Apple... hacked? HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA it's begun"
It really isn't the first time.
@JCerna
What do flowers have to do with this?
@Mike Vick Perhaps the account info was stolen through malware on user PCs? I didn't read anywhere that Apple itself was hacked.
@JCerna I want a stamen too please!
@Apple Legal
How is this a hack? It's called a FEATURE.
Apple has taken the "Genius" concept and applied it to eBooks. You may not want these Vietnamese books but Apple knows you will like them. Just trust Apple.
The process for purchasing goods and services went from offering products, to recommending products, to users thinking about buying a product (this step has been skipped thanks to Apple magic), to the system automatically buying the product for you. Very, very, ingenious. And much needed. Apple has already removed so much choice out of the user experience. This is the next logical step. I, for one, applaud their efforts.
@jon Actually he very possibly does. But he's not going to have an easy to guess account name like SteveJobs so hacking his account would be difficult. You'll have to figure out his account first.
IF this is account hacking it's probably easier to guess other folks. Or just create a bunch of dummy accounts to use promo codes and then more accounts to make actual buys, pad in some fake reviews and on the purchases, just have folks claim they didn't buy the stuff and end up with a bunch of chargebacks. It's actually a rather old game
@Apple Legal omg apple haters are jumping in their houses...
i don't understand why there is SO MANY people that check out all apple news.. when i had a G1 i checked android news.. i just bought an iphone 4 and i check apple news.. i don't go to check evo news nor galaxy news.. just like i don't check xbox360 news since i only have a ps3
why is there sooo much hate for apple, is it jealousy? why even bother to look into something that you don't own and not interested in buyin? it's so sad people do that to feel better about the other stuff they buy..
@engadgetcomexcludeengadget Market value means very little in the grand scheme of things. That basically means "the value as deemed by a bunch of regular citizens with money to spend".
Apples stock has risen drastically in recent years, but thats because they have come from zero to being a fairly profitable company. MS' stock is stagnant, but the compant isnt. Don't forget that MS still brings in double the revenue and profit that Apple does.
As to why Apple is having these issues, thats pretty simple. They have almost always been a fairly small company in the grand scheme of things. You can get away with having inferior functionality, hushing bad PR, etc when you are smalltime. Now that Apple has a few hits on their hands (iPad, iPhone, iTunes/App Store) their shortcomings are hitting the spotlight faster and harder. Very similar to how MS' did in the mid 90s (though to be fair, MS was unfairly crucified by the the EU)
Apple could only extend its monopolistic, fascist BS for so long. Now that they have hit the bigtime, they will either have to wind it down and become more customer oriented like MS or they will fail. If history is any indicator, their sales will plummit while they keep the same old PR tactics while trying to get sales by releasing product after product. Frustration will set in and they will oust jobs (or he will pass away) and Apple will float around for another couple years until they are bought out or close shop.
@BulletToothTony
People like reading about technology. Or the competition.
@Apple Legal
need to get that conan book!
@shadowj0
no one got hacked. It was just Steve Jobs controlling them when they are sleeping.
Steve Jobs: dumb bastards *grin*
@franktinsley
Your defending your opinion of aesthtics to a digital void. Now adjust you skinny jeans, straighten your Che Guarera t-shirt and let the tears drizzle like lemon oil from underneath your aviators and into your styled beard as you slink down the street on your fixie listening to indie folk rock. In your face Hipster Flander!
*hit you with a dill-dough full of knuckles that shoots testosterone*
@bjsguess
Good one.
Please do yourself a favor and watch Futurama episode 6x03. LOL
@MichaelJJackson you are correct that it could happen to anyone but apple has for a long time led users to believe that there is not a hacking problem with their products.
@Lord Vader
Dang those sneaky Bothan spies!!! What's next will they steal of a remote control's batteries! O the horror!!!!!!
@Jordus
Lol this would make a perfect story for another remake of a Christmas Carol, but with Steve Jobs as the Scrooge...
@MichaelJJackson
Hey dumbass. Those pics that they used do NOT belong to them. They are copyrights trademarks of someone else's work and Apple approved them.
@YoMamaOS
lmao who the fuck is che guarera?
@Apple Legal
So people fell for a phishing scam or something, and now other people are blaming it on Apple.
This is much like how people are blaming PayPal for losing their money, because they fall for PayPal phishing scams. A system isn't secure if the user is a moron.
It seems most of these "Apple fanboys" are actually just trolls trying to act in a highly sarcastic manner in order to start a flamewar. I find it completely moronic for someone to say "lolz were all isheep and jobs wants us to buy vietnamese books so he can make $$ lol!"
That being said, OS X is fairly "secure", but anyone who thinks "Macs are unhackable!" or "Jobs is lying to you!" has to grow up. Both ideas are just plain stupid.
@DefPoet Prove it.. And even so that is not apples policy to chase around looking for every trademark. The person who owns the pictures then has the right to sue the app developer..
@JCerna
And then, they will proceed to a software update for iTunes so you won't see how much money you spent in iTunes anymore. And they will call it "a fix"
@engadgetcomexcludeengadget
Fine job???
Killing Courier? Releasing Kin only to kill it soon afterward?
@engadgetcomexcludeengadget MS doing a fine job? Look at Kin. Kinetic is also pretty underwhelming.
Am no fan of Apple but really there's no nobility being in 2nd place.
@Apple Legal
I don't care...I don't care...I don't care...
@abu
My bad...GueVara
I typoed the V thought there was an E. He was a Marxist who played a pivotal roll in the Cuban revolution and his face has become similar to bob matleys as a counter culture symbol....by iPhone toting hipsters or as Holden Caulfield would have it...phony bastards
@Son Goku
It's totally appropriate. That Vietnamese title literally translated as "The 7 Dragon Balls."
@Son Goku
I guess you blew it huh
@fpad77
I agree with you that Apples attitude does "stink" and this is an embarrassment, but this is not a big deal to Apple. The vast majority of its customers DON'T follow tech blogs such as Engadget closely, so they don't see this sort of news. Most probably Apple wont say much at all to try and keep it quiet so it doesn't reach "mainstream" news. Its only when it becomes common knowledge does it hurt Apple. Things like this don't bother them, sadly :/
@fpad77
Easy, they'll admit to the antenae issue. This will take attention away from the iTunes store hack.