Apple warns of mercenary spyware attacks in 98 countries

Apple has sent a new round of threat alerts to iPhone users in 98 countries, warning them of possible mercenary spyware attacks. It is the company’s second such warning campaign this year, after a similar alert was sent to users in 92 countries in April.

Apple has been sending such notifications regularly since 2021, reaching users in over 150 countries, according to a support document on the company’s website. Wednesday’s warning did not reveal the identities of the attackers or the countries in which users received the notifications.

“Apple has determined that you are the target of a high-margin spyware attack that attempts to remotely compromise the iPhone associated with your Apple ID -xxx-,” the company wrote in the warning to affected customers.

“This attack likely targets you specifically because of who you are or what you do. While it is never possible to achieve absolute certainty in detecting such attacks, Apple has high confidence in this warning – please take it seriously,” Apple added in the text.

According to user reports, users in India are among those who have received Apple’s latest threat alerts. In October, Apple sent similar alerts to several journalists and politicians in the country. Amnesty International, a human rights organization, later reported that it had discovered the presence of Pegasus, a highly invasive spyware developed by Israeli company NSO Group, on the iPhones of prominent Indian journalists.

In its notice to affected users, Apple emphasized the sensitive nature of its threat identification methods and warned that sharing additional details could potentially help attackers evade future detection.

Apple has also significantly changed its language since last year, now referring to these incidents as “mercenary spyware attacks” instead of the previously used term “state-sponsored” attacks.

Apple said it relies solely on “internal threat intelligence and investigations” to detect such attacks.