14 years old: flagrant mistake of Facetime on the iPhone

Grant Thompson, age 14, was playing at "Fortnite" when he suddenly discovered a gaffe on Facetime. The 14-year-old student from Tucson (Arizona, USA) chatted with colleagues during the video game with the help of Apple's video call application. And used the new group chat feature, which can be connected to multiple people at the same time.

When a friend does not pick up the phone, Thompson wants to connect to another player, but suddenly hears what he says, even if the video call has not taken off. Of course, this listening is a serious violation of privacy.

The vulnerability in the FaceTools group chat allows you to hear even if the caller does not want it. Later, a technical magazine even discovers that the video camera will turn on even if you do not answer the call. For example, if you press the power button.

Grant Thompson's mother attempted to inform Apple on January 20 of this error. In vain, there was no response, as the teenager said in an interview with the ABC TV channel. The manufacturer reacted only when the media became aware of the case, understood the vulnerability and reported on it. And completely turn off group calls on Facetime on Tuesday, January 29th.

This is also surprising, since Apple has its own program that rewards those whose amount is less than 200 000 francs, finds the flaws of the software and informs the US company.

Maybe Apple could have prevented not only many media reports to react quickly, but also possible claims for damages. According to Bloomberg, a lawyer in Houston, Texas, has sued Apple because someone had surprised a confidential conversation with a customer via Facetime. And such a lawsuit can quickly become expensive in the United States.

Apple wants to update the group discussion feature with an update in the future, hopefully this time without problems.