I have copied some posts from a mac centric website I surf below. IMO apple will fix this issue with a patch in the next software update (soon I hope).

In the meantime I'll keep my wi-fi off and my ask to join networks off, relying on Edge and my bluetooth connection (at home, sometimes - odly) for internet.

****excerpted posts follow****

It's not a fake. One of the principal analysts at the company is a friend of mine (he told us about this hack two days ago), not to mention a devoted Apple fan (and fulltime iPhone user).

The hack is definitely real (and it's not really a virus in the sense that it doesn't self-replicate - it's just an exploitable flaw that allows arbitrary code execution). That said, it really doesn't make a significance difference (though Apple should, and undoubtedly will, fix it). Unless you lock your iPhone with a passcode (which would be a major PITA), it's an inherently insecure device and should be treated as such. This hack doesn't give someone substantially more information than they could get by just pick-pocketing your iPhone or finding your lost iPhone. In other words, don't store anything on your iPhone (or any phone) that you feel must stay confidential.

Any limitations Apple puts on 3rd party apps are more likely for *reliability* than security. The iPhone is - like all cell phones - an inherently insecure device.

***more***

How the exploit works

1. An attacker controlled wireless access point: Because the iPhone learns access points by name (SSID), if a user ever gets near an attacker-controlled access point with the same name (and encryption type) as an access point previously trusted by the user, the iPhone will automatically use the malicious access point.

Unless they set up APs across the world, this is no big issue. The odds are slim too, seeing that it has to be the same SSID and encryption type. Not to mention the range of WiFi.

2. A misconfigured forum website: If a web forum's software is not configured to prevent users from including potentially dangerous data in their posts, an attacker could cause the exploit to run in any iPhone browser that viewed the thread.

Stick with major, trusted forums.

3. A link delivered via e-mail or SMS: If an attacker can trick a user into opening a website that the attacker controls, the attacker can easily embed the exploit into the main page of the website.

This can happen to any computer or device that connects to the Internet if you are not careful. Also, we all know not to click on links we are not familiar with or are unsolicited.

***more***

If you read the article, you'd see these people aren't particulary anti-apple and realistically toned down the long term implications. But that doesn't exclude the fact that this appears to be a real and serious issue which will likely be patched by Apple before August 2nd.

****end of excerpted posts***

Personally, I am not all that worried about this. Enjoy your new toys, my friends!