Prepare, people, it’s begun… The Rise of the Machines. Apple users are reporting that their beloved iDevices have turned against them and holding their owners ransom…

iPhone, iPad and even Mac users have claimed to have woken up and found messages on their devices’ screens asking for between $50 and $100 in order to regain access. The problem was said to have originated in Australia (obviously, everything Down Under wants to kill us), but reports are now coming in from across the globe.

The hacking sleuths across the internet believe that the issue has arisen through a loophole in the Find My iPhone app, that a hacker has exploited and using a phishing scam to score some extra bucks.

It appears that whoever’s behind this has gotten hold of people’s iCloud usernames and passwords, then used the Find My iPhone feature to remotely lock devices, demanding payment in order to unlock them.

If you’ve been affected by the technological epidemic, there are some ways to try and save your iDevice from the grips of a scammer (or more likely an evil robot).

We’ll be in the 2oceansvibe bunker until this whole fiasco calms down…

[source: TIME]