Clicking on PDF Files Could Get Your iPhone, iPad Hacked

It's easy to get click-happy when using your iPhone, but surf to the wrong page, or open the wrong PDF file, and hackers can take over the device, Germany's information security agency said.

A Thursday report from Germany's Federal Office for Information Security indicated a critical vulnerability in the way iOS devices - the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch - deal with PDFs. The report said a hacker taking advantage of the weakness would be gain access to a users' confidential information including passwords, email, and bank data, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Apple said it is working on the issue.

Apple takes security very seriously, said Trudy Muller, a company spokeswoman. We're are of this reported issue and developing a fix that will be available to customers in an upcoming software update.

A specific timeline for the fix was not supplied by Muller.

But the hacking of the iPhone operating system is not new; it has faced similar security holes in the past. In 2009, security researchers found a way for hackers to tak over the phone by sending a malicious text message. And earlier this year, one of the same researchers, Charlie Miller, found a way to break into the iPhone 4 when a user surfs a booby-trapped website.

Apple has since fixed both vulnerabilities.