Apple Inc, has warned its users in India and ninety-one other countries that they were possible victims of a "mercenary spyware attack", according to a threat notification email that was sent to targeted users.
The company discovered that attackers tried to "remotely compromise the iPhone", Apple said in the notification email seen by Reuters.
Mercenary spyware attacks are rare and vastly more sophisticated than regular cybercriminal activity or malware, according to the notification email.
The iPhone-maker has sent threat notifications such as these multiple times a year since 2021, the notification email said, adding that it has notified users in more than 150 countries in total to date.
In October 20223, some Indian lawmakers shared screenshots on social media of a notification quoting the iPhone manufacturer as saying: "Apple believes you are being targeted by state-sponsored attackers who are trying to remotely compromise the iPhone associated with your Apple ID".
The company had then said it did not attribute the threat notifications to "any specific state-sponsored attacker".
In October, Apple sent out similar notifications to several prominent political leaders in India who represented opposition parties. Rahul Gandhi, the top leader of Congress—India’s main opposition party—told reporters he and several members of his and other opposition parties had received notifications that their iPhones were being targeted by “state-sponsored attackers.” At the time, Gandhi called out Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government and accused them of carrying out the attack.
Prominent activists and journalists who are critical of the Modi government also received the notification at the time. Apple confirmed it had sent out the notifications but said it had not attributed it to a “specific state-sponsored attacker.” In late December, Amnesty International said it had conducted a forensic investigation to confirm Apple’s findings and said NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware was used to carry out the attacks. Indian authorities publicly denied carrying out the attacks but, according to the Washington Post, they reportedly pressured Apple to “come up with alternative explanations for the warnings to users,” to ease the political fallout.
[Reuters]
The company discovered that attackers tried to "remotely compromise the iPhone", Apple said in the notification email seen by Reuters.
Mercenary spyware attacks are rare and vastly more sophisticated than regular cybercriminal activity or malware, according to the notification email.
The iPhone-maker has sent threat notifications such as these multiple times a year since 2021, the notification email said, adding that it has notified users in more than 150 countries in total to date.
In October 20223, some Indian lawmakers shared screenshots on social media of a notification quoting the iPhone manufacturer as saying: "Apple believes you are being targeted by state-sponsored attackers who are trying to remotely compromise the iPhone associated with your Apple ID".
The company had then said it did not attribute the threat notifications to "any specific state-sponsored attacker".
In October, Apple sent out similar notifications to several prominent political leaders in India who represented opposition parties. Rahul Gandhi, the top leader of Congress—India’s main opposition party—told reporters he and several members of his and other opposition parties had received notifications that their iPhones were being targeted by “state-sponsored attackers.” At the time, Gandhi called out Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government and accused them of carrying out the attack.
Prominent activists and journalists who are critical of the Modi government also received the notification at the time. Apple confirmed it had sent out the notifications but said it had not attributed it to a “specific state-sponsored attacker.” In late December, Amnesty International said it had conducted a forensic investigation to confirm Apple’s findings and said NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware was used to carry out the attacks. Indian authorities publicly denied carrying out the attacks but, according to the Washington Post, they reportedly pressured Apple to “come up with alternative explanations for the warnings to users,” to ease the political fallout.
[Reuters]
