Apple has just released an urgent security update in order to fix spyware issues related to iMessage, we recommend you update your devices now. This security flaw was putting all of the iPhones, iPads, Macs, and Apple Watches under the risk.
Update your Apple devices now
After researching a phone infected with Pegasus spyware, which was owned by a Saudi dissident, Citizen Lab revealed the existence of a vulnerability in iOS, iPadOS, and macOS. In their research, the researchers discovered that NSO Group, an Israeli technology firm, used a zero-click exploit in iMessage to infect the target device.
“This spyware can do everything an iPhone user can do on their device and more.” Ivan Krstić, Apple’s chief security engineering and architecture officer, commented that: “Attacks like the ones described are highly sophisticated, cost millions of dollars to develop, often have a short shelf life and are used to target specific individuals.”
John Scott-Railton, a researcher at Citizen Lab
This type of exploit does not need any user input because it relies on a natural human curiosity to explore and learn about objects, which can be found all over the world. It is triggered by observing an object or situation that makes a person want to discover more about it. In this case, NSO needed to simply attach a message via iMessage, exploiting a vulnerability in its code that made it invisible to the recipient, without the recipient noticing any suspicious activity.
Apple fixed spyware security issues related to iMessage
When a security firm discovers an oddity of this kind, it is alerted to the business responsible as a security and responsibility measure to prevent it from spreading further. This approach ensures that the problem is addressed before it becomes widely known. By updating CVE-2021-30860, the firm already resolved this issue.
Therefore, according to Apple’s report, to fix this problem it is necessary to have at least iOS 14.8, iPad OS 14.8, watchOS 7.6.2, macOS Big Sur 11.6 and security update 2021-005 for macOS Catalina.
