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Apple's latest security flaw is a 'text bomb' Apple's latest security flaw is a 'text bomb'  

1:54 PM ET Thu, 18 Jan 2018 | 00:52

A newly discovered security flaw is affecting Apple's iPhone and Mac computers.

Software developer Abraham Masri claimed to have found the bug, called "chaiOS," and posted it on programming site GitHub on Tuesday afternoon. The so-called "text bomb" typically causes an iPhone to crash and, in some cases, restart.

Sending a message which contains the link to Masri's code would be all it takes to activate the bug — even if the recipient did not click on the link. Meanwhile, on a Mac computer, the security flaw was found to crash the Safari browser, as well as causing other slowdowns.

Masri said he "always" reported bugs to the tech-giant before releasing them. Apple said a fix is coming in a software update next week.

Shortly after the tweet was shared on social media, Masri removed the link from GitHub.

"I'm not going to re-upload it … I made my point. Apple needs to take such bugs more seriously," he said on Twitter.

'More of a nuisance' than a security threat

Renowned security expert Graham Cluley said the newly discovered bug did not represent a major security threat. Instead, he said the "text bomb" was merely an annoyance to Apple consumers.

"Something about the so-called ChaiOS bug's code gives your Apple device a brainstorm," he said in a blog post published late Tuesday.

"Nasty. But, thankfully, more of a nuisance than something that will lead to data being stolen from your computer or a malicious hacker being able to access your files," he added.

Late last year, Apple was scrambling to fix another glitch. The tech behemoth apologized to consumers in November after users of its latest Mac operating system were able to gain entry to the computer without the use of a password.

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