Apple warns of mercenary spyware infections in 99 countries
Original title: Apple notifications alert victims in 99 countries about mercenary spyware infections
Recipients include journalists and filmmakers; Apple has now notified users in more than 150 countries and does not name attackers.
Apple sent mercenary-spyware infection notices to targeted users in 99 countries, including journalists and documentary filmmakers. The company said it does not attribute the attacks or the notices to any attacker or region, and it did not name the countries. Citizen Lab and Access Now called the batch significant and pointed victims to Lockdown Mode and Access Now. The notices arrived as Pall Mall Process talks near final guidelines on commercial hacking tools.
Unconfirmed: Apple did not identify the spyware, attackers, or the 99 countries, and did not comment Friday.
- Apple’s last major notification batch was in August.
- Notices often lead victims to Access Now and Citizen Lab for investigation.
- Apple recommends Lockdown Mode; lack of a notice does not rule out infection.
- John Scott-Railton warned against paid companies offering spyware cleanup.
- Pall Mall industry guidelines would follow earlier government guidelines.
Impact: Mercenary spyware infections on targeted users’ devices
- 1.Enable Lockdown Mode on notified Apple devices.
- 2.Contact Access Now for help investigating a spyware notification.
- Vendors
- Apple
- Products
- iPhone
- Organizations
- The Citizen LabAccess NowUniversity of Toronto
From the original article
4 min read at cyberscoop.com
The notifications come shortly before the Pall Mall Process is nearing final negotiations on guidelines for the use of commercial hacking tools. The post Apple notifications alert victims in 99 countries about mercenary spyware infections appeared first on CyberScoop.
By Tim Starks · cyberscoop.com
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