New KeyRaider Malware from China Effects Some 225,000 iPhone Accounts Worldwide

New reports indicate that KeyRaider malware is mostly found in Chinese websites and apps that provide software for jailbroken iPhones. But the malware has spread far beyond China, showing up in 18 countries, including the United States. Once infected with the KeyRaider malware, a jailbroken iPhone will give up all of its owner's iTunes App Store information to the hackers, including the Apple (AAPL, Tech30) account username, password and the iPhone's unique ID. It also steals all the information about the owner's App Store purchases and prevents people from recovering their phones once they've been hijacked.
The hackers aren't keeping all that for themselves: They have allowed other people to take advantage of the stolen account information.

This is by no means the first major hacking attack attributed to the Chinese.  The hackers have uploaded software that lets other people purchase iTunes apps for "free," using the victims' accounts. About 20,000 people have downloaded the software that lets them steal from the 225,000 effected iPhone owners.What will be the global impact of this hacking episode on iPhone customers? Send your comments to the Smartphone and Tablet Zone.