With the length of downtime for Apple’s Developer Center nearing a week, Apple has set up a status page to track the restoration of the center’s functions. Apple notified developers of the status via email this afternoon:
We apologize for the significant inconvenience caused by our developer website downtime. We’ve been working around the clock to overhaul our developer systems, update our server software, and rebuild our entire database. While we complete the work to bring our systems back online, we want to share the latest with you.
The Developer Center was taken down after a security breach last week, which Apple confirmed over the weekend. The purported culprit was an independent security researcher who has stated that his intention was to identify and prove the existence of serious security flaws in Apple’s website and developer database. The hacker claims that only the information of Apple employees was accessed and that data on non-employee developers is safe. Apple has stated that some developer information, such as names, email addresses, and phone numbers, was indeed accessed, although the extent of the breach is thus far unknown.
Apple has been working to rebuild the developer database and the Developer Center’s infrastructure. According to the company’s latest communication, developer certificates, identifiers, profiles, forums, the Bug Reporter, and developer reference and educational materials will be restored first. The team working on the repairs will then move on to restoring the software downloads portion of the site, which provides access to both release and pre-release versions of software and device firmware.
Developers can visit Apple’s status page to keep up with the restoration’s progress. Currently, only iTunes Connect and Bug Reporter are online.
Apple developers require a membership to gain access to the Developer Center and publish iOS and Mac App Store applications. Because developers cannot access the Developer Center to manage or renew their accounts, Apple states that any developer account set to expire during this outage will be automatically extended to ensure that developers’ apps remain available on the app stores.
