Apple is launching a “lock mode” for its devices to protect people, including journalists and human rights activists, targeting piracy attacks such as those launched by government customers of NSO Group using its Pegasus spyware.
Apple will implement the setup in the fall and believes it would have prevented previously known spyware attacks by shutting down technical avenues for digital espionage. He said the lock mode was intended for users facing “serious and targeted threats to their digital security.”
The news is a sign of how the proliferation of mercenary spyware, or tools that government customers can use to hack any phone and control them remotely, has become a major business concern for Apple and other manufacturers. phones.
While for years Apple seemed to downplay the threat posed by Pegasus and other spyware to its customers, including emphasizing that these hacking attacks affected relatively few users, supporters of the company’s latest measure say the new feature recognizes the seriousness of the threat.
Protections offered by the lock mode include blocking most message attachments, blocking FaceTime incoming calls if the user has not previously called the initiator, or sent a call request, and blocking access to an iPhone when connected to a computer or accessory when locked. .
Ron Deibert, founder and head of the Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto’s Munk School, said the new environment would “definitely” make it harder for customers in the NSO group and other companies to successfully target individuals. , and compared it with the introduction. two-factor authentication.
“In other words, some security measures are being introduced that reduce the functionality and experience of the user in exchange for security. And … we expect other platforms to do something similar, “Deibert said.” We’ve seen big technology platforms begin to address the threats posed by the mercenary spyware industry. We certainly applaud and welcome. “
He added that if users adopted the new settings, it would “completely reduce the chance of getting inside and exploiting any flaws in applications or other pieces of software” that make it possible for spyware like Pegasus to infect a phone.
When an iPhone or other phone becomes infected with Pegasus, the spyware user can take charge of that phone by accessing messages, pictures, and location. The software can even turn a phone into a remote listening device.
Apple does not disclose the number of its users subjected to Pegasus-style hacking, but its devices have been the target of widespread attacks in 150 countries. Pegasus is a piracy program developed and licensed to governments around the world by NSO Group, an Israeli company. It can infect iOS or Android phones and can be delivered through “zero click” attacks, which do not require any interaction with the phone owner to access the device.
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Apple, which is suing NSO in the U.S., said the new mode was designed for users at risk of being targeted by some of the “most sophisticated digital threats, such as those of the NSO group and other private companies that develop spyware. state-sponsored mercenary “. He described the mode, which will come with iOS 16, iPadOS 16 and macOS Ventura in the fall, as an optional measure for a “very small number of users.”
Apple is offering a $ 2 million (£ 1.7 million) reward to anyone who can find a way to dodge the new setup. She also announced that she is awarding a $ 10 million grant to the Dignity and Justice Fund, a funding initiative set up by the Ford Foundation to help it expose and investigate targeted cyberattacks.
NSO has said it investigates all credible allegations of abuse against its government customers and that its spyware should only be used to attack serious criminals such as pedophiles and terrorists.