It looks as though another security flaw has been discovered in relation to iOS devices. This one allows anyone with an Apple made Smart Cover to bypass a users password-protected iPad 2 and possibly gain access to personal information.
According to 9to5 Mac, the flaw occurs on iOS 5, but may also be working on earlier versions of iOS 4.3. The flaw allows anyone with a Smart Cover to unlock the iPad 2 very easily, once they have done so, they will have access to anything that you had on screen when your iPad 2 went into sleep mode.
As the article states, this could be confidential e-mail, messages, contact details and more, though if it opens up on the main home screen, you will only be able to view a persons apps and not run any. It also looks like you can delete applications, which means that personal data could be destroyed too.
Recreating the flaw is easy according to the site:
- Lock a password protected iPad 2
- Hold down power button until iPad 2 reaches turn off slider
- Close Smart Cover
- Open Smart Cover
- Click cancel on the bottom of the screen
Currently the only way to stop this from happening is to disable Smart Cover unlocking via the settings in iOS. We doubt it will be long before Apple fixes this issue.