A New York electronic artist who took pictures of shoppers using computers in Apple stores as part of a project has drawn the attention of the US Secret Service.

Kyle McDonald, 25, of Brooklyn, set up a software program on computers at two Apple stores in New York that took pictures of shoppers as they stared into the screen, the social media news site Mashable reported.

McDonald then posted the pictures on his Tumblr blog peoplestaringatcomputers.tumblr.com.

"I thought maybe (if) we could see ourselves doing this we would think more about our computers and how were using them," he told Mashable.

Writing on his Twitter feed at @kcimc on Thursday, McDonald said he had received a visit from Secret Service agents equipped with a search warrant related to "fraud and related activity in connection with computers."

"@secretservice just stopped by to investigate… and took my laptop," he wrote. "Please assume they're reading any emails you send me."

Continuing on Twitter, McDonald said he had been in contact with the digital rights group the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

"In contact with the @eff," he said. "They've encouraged me to stay quiet for now. lots of good discussion happening, very sorry i can't join in."

Replying to a question on Twitter, McDonald said he did not believe he had broken any laws.

"As i understand, photography in open spaces is legal unless explicitly prohibited," he said. "The only permission came from the (Apple store) guard."

earlier related report

Apple girding gadgets against hackers
San Francisco (AFP) July 8, 2011 –

Apple on Friday said it was working to patch a vulnerability that hackers could use to break into the company's popular iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch gadgets.

Engineers at the California firm are fixing a weakness pointed out by the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI).

"Apple takes security very seriously," Apple spokeswoman Trudy Muller said in response to an AFP inquiry.

"We are aware of this reported issue and developing a fix that will be available in an upcoming software update," she said.

BSI warned this week of a flaw that would let hackers infiltrate Apple mobile devices by duping users into opening PDF document files booby-trapped with malicious computer code.

Although no attacks have been observed, hackers are likely to try to exploit the weakness, according to a posting on the agency's website.

Possible "attack scenarios for cyber-criminals" include accessing passwords, email messages, contact lists, or built-in cameras and eavesdropping on phone conversations or getting location information, according to BSI.

The agency recommended that Apple device users guard against hackers by not opening PDF documents from unfamiliar sources.

Apple gadget users should limit Web browsing to reliable websites and avoid clicking on links in emails unless they are certain where they lead, BSI advised.