When the bug was on a hairy patch it was detected, on average, every four seconds.

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However, earlier in December Snapchat did issue a patch for a bug that put permanent versions of unwatched videos into the media gallery on Android phones.

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The patch also fixes a bug discovered earlier this month that allows anyone who gains physical access to a phone to bypass its lockscreen in seconds and access contacts and photos.

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Pax says the worm hides his XSS bug to make it harder to detect and patch, and he hopes to sell the program for close to a thousand euros.

FORBES: Updated with a more detailed statement from Yahoo! below.

"It's safe to say that when someone pays that much for a bug, they're not going to tell the vendor to patch it, " he says.

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Whatever specific code snafu that is causing this particular bug appears to have been deemed too minor to issue a full software patch over and Apple has elected to let it run its course instead.

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Second gen hardware is generally expected to atone for the bug-ridden sins of its predecessors, so hopefully a short delay now means avoiding a quick patch later.

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Google has said that Ormandy was working independently of his employer, and Ormandy has defended himself on Twitter, writing that he only revealed the bug on the Full Disclosure mailing list after first attempting to negotiate a 60-day deadline for Microsoft to patch the flaw.

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