Opposition Leaders Including Several MPs Claim Hacking Attempt On iPhones

Several Opposition Leaders Claimed That They Have Received An Alert From Apple, Warning Them Of “State-Sponsored Attackers Trying To Remotely Compromise” Their iPhone And Alleged Hacking By The Government, A...

Zaheer Hussain
November 1, 2023
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Several Opposition Leaders Claimed That They Have Received An Alert From Apple, Warning Them Of “State-Sponsored Attackers Trying To Remotely Compromise” Their iPhone And Alleged Hacking By The Government, A Charge Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw Rejected But Ordered A Thorough Probe.

Opposition Leaders Including Several MPs Claim Hacking Attempt On iPhones

Why In The News?

Several Opposition Leaders Claimed That They Have Received An Alert From Apple, Warning Them Of “State-Sponsored Attackers Trying To Remotely Compromise” Their iPhone And Alleged Hacking By The Government, A Charge Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw Rejected But Ordered A Thorough Probe.

What Apple Said?

On August 23, The Tech Giant Said On Its Website That Apple Threat Notifications Are Designed To Inform And Assist Users Who May Have Been Targeted By State-sponsored Attackers. In The Mail As Well As On Its Website, Apple Warned That “These Attackers Are Likely Targeting You Individually Because Of Who You Are Or What You Do”.

Who Are These State-Sponsored Attackers?

Unlike Traditional Cybercriminals, Apple Warned That State-sponsored Attackers Apply Exceptional Resources To Target A Very Small Number Of Specific Individuals And Their Devices, Which Makes These Attacks Much Harder To Detect And Prevent.

State-Sponsored Attacks Are Highly Complex, Cost Millions Of Dollars To Develop And Often Have A Short Shelf Life. The Vast Majority Of Users Will Never Be Targeted By Such Attacks. Apple Said On Its Website.
The Tech Giant Further Said It Is Unable To Provide More Information About What Led It To Send This Notification To The Opposition Leaders As That May Help The State- Sponsored Attackers Alter Their Behaviour To Evade Detection In The Future.

Who Received The Notification?

Those Who Received Such Notifications Included Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Party Leaders Tharoor, Pawan Khera, K C Venugopal, Supriya Shrinate, Trinamool Congress’s Mahua Moitra, CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury And Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav.
Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi, Aam Aadmi Party’s Raghav Chadha, AIMIM President Asaduddin Owaisi And Some Aides Of Congress MP Rahul Gandhi Have Also Received The Notification.

Any Action Taken By The Govt?

Within Hours Of The Controversy Erupting, Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw Addressed A Press Conference Wherein He Stated That The Centre “Is Concerned About This Issue And It Will Go To The Bottom Of It”.
He Further Said The Centre Has Initiated A Probe And Asked Apple To Join The Investigation With “Real, Accurate Information On The Alleged State-sponsored Attacks”. The Probe Will Be Conducted By Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In).

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Zaheer Hussain

Senior Lecturer General Studies, SSBCrackExams, Passionate Teacher, Masters in Public Administration, Expertise in Polity, History and Current Affairs. Loves Food and traveling Solo.