Apple Watch version?

[Amaroq_Starwind]

On the TestFlight app, I noticed a field which said "Apple Watch — No"

Though I don't own an Apple Watch, this makes me wonder; could the Malwarebytes iOS app be extended to provide Apple Watch protection as well?

[treed]

That is not something we have seen much demand for - in truth, you're the first to ask. However, it's worth considering a companion app for the Apple Watch at some point. Of course, that is not a promise that it will happen!

[Amaroq_Starwind]

I wonder what could actually be done in terms of Apple Watch protection. As far as I know, wearables aren't the most secure devices.

[alvarnell]

1 hour ago, Amaroq_Starwind said:

As far as I know, wearables aren't the most secure devices.

Nor is the iWatch the most vulnerable, given the walled garden approach that is iOS.

I have a difficult time imagining what threats are involved. I can understand that an iWatch with cell service is subject to some of the same nuisances as an iPhone (e.g. Spam calls), but wouldn’t be subject to adware or malicious downloads. Perhaps a data stealing app that slipped through the App Store, but that would be Apple's responsibility to correct and would not be detectable by an currently available anti-malware process. None of that sounds like something a hacker would be willing to spend time with, considering the lack of payback.

Nation States would probably be interested in being able to GPS or cell track a watch, but how would one go about preventing this unless the responsible malware was already known to exist?

[Amaroq_Starwind]

Well, a lot of wearables transmit information between themselves and their host device using insecure protocols. That might be one thing to look into.
Alternatively, new functionality altogether could be implemented, like using the Apple Watch's Bluetooth radio to scan for debit card skimmers on ATMs, gas pumps or vending machines, which themselves often use Bluetooth.

[alvarnell]

18 minutes ago, Amaroq_Starwind said:

Well, a lot of wearables transmit information between themselves and their host device using insecure protocols.

All iWatch to paired iPhone link communications are IDS encrypted and both BlueTooth and WiFi protocols provide a second layer of encryption. Should anyone manage to pair the watch to a different iPhone, all personal data is erased.

Details and more can be found in https://www.apple.com/business/site/docs/iOS_Security_Guide.pdf.

Not sure how difficult it would be to have Bluetooth automatically alert to a skimmer would be, but worth exploring. Police apparently have such detection devices.

[exile360]

I think a simple notification tool/front-end for the watch would be nifty, especially for the existing spam/scam filtering functionality to notify the user on their watch that the incoming message/call etc. is being blocked due to being a scam/suspected of being a scam etc., assuming this functionality doesn't already exist.

[Amaroq_Starwind]

On 12/3/2018 at 12:11 AM, alvarnell said:

Not sure how difficult it would be to have Bluetooth automatically alert to a skimmer would be, but worth exploring. Police apparently have such detection devices.

There are some existing apps on the app store that already do this, it seems... Some more functional than others. There's also an app which uses your GPS instead of Bluetooth, to show you a map of ATMs, Gas Pumps, and so on which have been marked as Unsafe, as well as the locations that haven't had a Skimmer report in the past six months. Unfortunately, the app doesn't actually work, it just shows a satellite map with no information. 😕