iOS Reset and Erase All Settings - Total System Wipe?

[Tucom]

If there was any kind of malware or malicious code/virus on my iOS device, would the Reset and Erase All Settings take care of it? Nothing was really done at all to make me think there would be any such kind of thing on my iPad (4th gen), however I went to a super old e-mail that that had spam etc. in it (done with that e-mail permanently now), so just incase that was an issue, would that get rid of any kind of malicious code?

 

[jonblatho]

If there was any kind of malware or malicious code/virus on my iOS device, would the Reset and Erase All Settings take care of it? Nothing was really done at all to make me think there would be any such kind of thing on my iPad (4th gen), however I went to a super old e-mail that that had spam etc. in it (done with that e-mail permanently now), so just incase that was an issue, would that get rid of any kind of malicious code?

Mail messages can't execute code, malicious or otherwise, on iOS, and there are no exploits relating to Mail at this time (as far as I know). Your device is fine.

That said, if wiping your iPad would make you feel better, go for it…but it's not necessary.

 

[perkedel]

If there was any kind of malware or malicious code/virus on my iOS device, would the Reset and Erase All Settings take care of it? Nothing was really done at all to make me think there would be any such kind of thing on my iPad (4th gen), however I went to a super old e-mail that that had spam etc. in it (done with that e-mail permanently now), so just incase that was an issue, would that get rid of any kind of malicious code?

If you really want to completely wipe, just DFU it. I've done it on my 6 Plus just cuz, I used the instruction here:
https://theiphonewiki.com/wiki/DFU_Mode

 

[Tucom]

Mail messages can't execute code, malicious or otherwise, on iOS, and there are no exploits relating to Mail at this time (as far as I know). Your device is fine.

That said, if wiping your iPad would make you feel better, go for it…but it's not necessary.

That's good to know, but doesn't answer my main question. Good info though, thanks.

Anyways, I probably should have mentioned that it was via Safari with Yahoo.

 

[C DM]

That's good to know, but doesn't answer my main question. Good info though, thanks.

Anyways, I probably should have mentioned that it was via Safari with Yahoo.

It doesn't really matter if it was with Safari or another app and what site/service might be in question. As long as it was within iOS (that isn't jailbroken) nothing really would happen.

 

[crashoverride77]

If there was any kind of malware or malicious code/virus on my iOS device, would the Reset and Erase All Settings take care of it? Nothing was really done at all to make me think there would be any such kind of thing on my iPad (4th gen), however I went to a super old e-mail that that had spam etc. in it (done with that e-mail permanently now), so just incase that was an issue, would that get rid of any kind of malicious code?

It probably wouldn't. A reset and erase all contents doesn't wipe the hard drive so that theoretical virus/malware would most likely still be there after.

A iTunes restore wipes the hard drive completely and downloads/installs iOS from scratch which almost certainly would get rid of it.

 

[PNutts]

Do you mean Erase All Content and Settings? Nothing will be left after this.

 

[braddick]

Do you mean Erase All Content and Settings? Nothing will be left after this.

Other than tears, if you're jailbroken.

 

[Tucom]

It probably wouldn't. A reset and erase all contents doesn't wipe the hard drive so that theoretical virus/malware would most likely still be there after.

A iTunes restore wipes the hard drive completely and downloads/installs iOS from scratch which almost certainly would get rid of it.

Well the post right below yours states the opposite, but either way the others have said that there's really no worry about having got a virus/malware in the first place, which I guess was really my main concern.

And what you say makes sense, but then the other post says otherwise. Curious which one is right? Either way thanks for the info.

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Do you mean Erase All Content and Settings? Nothing will be left after this.

Yeah, that's the one. You sure? The other guy says that wouldn't be the case, but either way I don't think I got anything malware in the first place, I hope!

 

[crashoverride77]

Well the post right below yours states the opposite, but either way the others have said that there's really no worry about having got a virus/malware in the first place, which I guess was really my main concern.

And what you say makes sense, but then the other post says otherwise. Curious which one is right? Either way thanks for the info.

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Yeah, that's the one. You sure? The other guy says that wouldn't be the case, but either way I don't think I got anything malware in the first place, I hope!

An erase all settings and content doesn't not format the HD. How would it than install iOS again?
The only way to 100% reset your phone is a DFU on iTunes. I'm pretty sure I'm right and the other guy is wrong. Feel free to clear me up

 

[striders]

Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought the iPhone storage is encrypted and when you do "Erase all contents and settings", the data is wiped though not securely (not wiping it with 1's and 0's multiple times). However, the key to encrypt the data is also deleted and without it, you cannot get the wiped data back.

 

[PNutts]

Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought the iPhone storage is encrypted and when you do "Erase all contents and settings", the data is wiped though not securely (not wiping it with 1's and 0's multiple times). However, the key to encrypt the data is also deleted and without it, you cannot get the wiped data back.

You are mostly correct. The data is not wiped at all unless the device does not support hardware encryption.

Understanding Erase all Content and Settings

 

[997440]

From the Sept. 2014 Security Guide --

.....
Architecture overview

Every time a file on the data partition is created, Data Protection creates a new 256-bit key (the “per-file” key) and gives it to the hardware AES engine, which uses the key to encrypt the file as it is written to flash memory using AES CBC mode. The initialization vector (IV) is calculated with the block offset into the file, encrypted with the SHA-1 hash of the per-file key.

The per-file key is wrapped with one of several class keys, depending on the circumstances under which the file should be accessible. Like all other wrappings, this is performed using NIST AES key wrapping, per RFC 3394. The wrapped per-file key is stored in the file’s metadata.

When a file is opened, its metadata is decrypted with the file system key, revealing the wrapped per-file key and a notation on which class protects it. The per-file key is unwrapped with the class key, then supplied to the hardware AES engine, which decrypts the file as it is read from flash memory.

The metadata of all files in the file system is encrypted with a random key, which is created when iOS is first installed or when the device is wiped by a user. The file system key is stored in Effaceable Storage. Since it’s stored on the device, this key is not used to maintain the confidentiality of data; instead, it’s designed to be quickly erased on demand (by the user, with the “Erase all content and settings” option, or by a user or administrator issuing a remote wipe command from a mobile device management (MDM) server, Exchange ActiveSync, or iCloud). Erasing the key in this manner renders all files cryptographically inaccessible.
.....

https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/1302613/ios-security-guide-sept-2014.pdf