Apple iCloud Hack: 300 Million Accounts Compromised; Hackers Demand But Company Refuses To Pay Ransom

A group of hacker claimed to have access to at least 300 million iCloud accounts worldwide. They said that they are going to delete the data obtained from these accounts if Apple will not pay a $75,000 ransom money.

In an article posted in Motherboard, it is said that a single group of hackers who identified themselves as the "Turkish Crime Family" claimed that their group has access to iCloud accounts. Furthermore, the publication said Apple refused to pay money to have those accounts returned.

The Turkish Crime Family said that if Apple will grant what they want, they will let go of the claimed 300 million iCloud accounts. They have demanded $75,000 worth of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum or $100,000 worth of gift cards in the company by Apri. 7.

What would happen if Apple won't comply to the Turkish Crime Family? They said that they will reset some of the iCloud accounts and wipe Apple devices from victims. They said that people with their iCloud account in their Apple products would not just be limited to some generic e-mail. Some of these are @icloud.com, @me.com, and @mac.com addresses.

Various reports showed that the hackers provided screenshots of alleged emails between the group and some members of Apple's security team. They also shared an unlinked and unlisted YouTube video that seemingly shows proof of them accessing someone with an iCloud account who looks like an elderly woman. 

Despite having a screenshot of the email, the Apple security team refused to abide by the request of the hacking group. They said that they turned down the ransom because the company does now allow cyber criminals to do what they want and break the law.

Apple requested to see this alleged sample of the dataset hacked by The Turkish Crime Family. However, it is unclear if the hackers followed the company's instruction.

CSO Online said in their article that the group now claims to have additional hackers that would nab and share additional account credentials for hacking in Apple. Now, they said that they have over 627 million accounts in their hands.