Hacker Group Claims Apple Data Breach, Offers Little Proof

A group of hackers called 1775 Sec claims to have hacked into Apple's databases and made off with user names, passwords, email addresses, phone numbers, and more. The group posted what it claimed was a list of users from the database, but the information appears old and offers up little to verify it actually came from Apple's servers.

Hackers claim to have downloaded user data from Apple's serversHackers claim to have downloaded user data from Apple's servers

1775 Sec announced the hack through its Twitter account -- an account the group now says it has stopped using -- and as of a few hours ago said, "all Operations are being Suspended until Further Notice."

The group claimed to have gained access to an Apple database with the assistance of European Cyber Army. 1775 Sec followed up by posting online what it said was part of the list.

While the list does show user names, passwords, and other bits of identifying information that lend some validity to 1775 Sec's claims, it doesn't offer definitive proof the data came from Apple. The email addresses listed, for example, don't seem to include icloud, me, or .mac domains, which are common among Apple account holders.

Apple Insider noted that many of the phone numbers listed aren't valid, hinting that the data is old or fabricated. The group also claimed to have hacked into Dropbox's database, then changed its story to claim responsibility for downtime users experienced a few days ago. Dropbox said the down time was an unexpected problem from scheduled maintenance and not from a DDOS attack as 1775 Sec claimed.

The hackers tried to spin their Dropbox story into a threat against Apple stating,
We repeatedly warned you Apple Inc... You thought because we faked some Drop Box leaks, that we actually didn't hack you? You made a foolish move Apple! We are the 1775Sec and the European Cyber Army!

Apple hasn't commented on the database breach yet, which may be another indicator that the hackers made up their story.

With 1775 Sec going silent, the group isn't doing anything to prove its hack was legit. Considering it already admitted to faking other hacks, it'll take a lot more than some vague data to back up their claims of an Apple data breach.