Apple Issues Alert to iPhone Users in 92 Countries, Warning of Today's Most Serious Digital Threats
A concerning warning was received by numerous iPhone users who were identified by Apple as potential targets of spyware monitoring attempts.
On Wednesday, Apple alerted iPhone users across 92 countries about the risk of attacks carried out using spyware, as reported by TechCrunch.
Through what are known as "threat notifications," the company aims to inform and assist users who "may have been specifically targeted by spyware attacks."
The company did not disclose who launched the attacks, nor did it specify which countries' users received the notification, which contained the following message:
"Apple has detected that you were the target of a spyware attack. This attempt was made to hack the iPhone associated with your Apple ID."
In the notification, Apple also mentioned that the attack might have specifically targeted the individual due to their activities. Although the company cannot guarantee complete certainty – a point noted in the message – it urges those who received it to take the warning seriously.
Apple has dedicated a separate page to these types of attacks and the methods of defense against them, like the Lockdown Mode, for instance.
"According to public reports and research issued by civil organizations, tech companies, and journalists, these highly expensive and complex, targeted attacks have always been linked to state actors, including private companies developing spyware on behalf of state actors (e.g., the NSO Group's Pegasus program). Such spyware is typically deployed against a very limited number of individuals (usually journalists, activists, politicians, and diplomats), but this does not mean they don't represent a continuous global threat," Apple explains.
The company also notes that such attacks can be considered among today's most severe digital threats.
Through what are known as "threat notifications," the company aims to inform and assist users who "may have been specifically targeted by spyware attacks."
The company did not disclose who launched the attacks, nor did it specify which countries' users received the notification, which contained the following message:
"Apple has detected that you were the target of a spyware attack. This attempt was made to hack the iPhone associated with your Apple ID."
In the notification, Apple also mentioned that the attack might have specifically targeted the individual due to their activities. Although the company cannot guarantee complete certainty – a point noted in the message – it urges those who received it to take the warning seriously.
Apple has dedicated a separate page to these types of attacks and the methods of defense against them, like the Lockdown Mode, for instance.
"According to public reports and research issued by civil organizations, tech companies, and journalists, these highly expensive and complex, targeted attacks have always been linked to state actors, including private companies developing spyware on behalf of state actors (e.g., the NSO Group's Pegasus program). Such spyware is typically deployed against a very limited number of individuals (usually journalists, activists, politicians, and diplomats), but this does not mean they don't represent a continuous global threat," Apple explains.
The company also notes that such attacks can be considered among today's most severe digital threats.
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