From TechCrunch · Zack Whittaker · · 1m 30s
German lawmakers' iPhones targeted by state spyware
Apple warned members of the Bundestag they may have been hacked with government-backed spyware that steals messages and location data.
In brief
Apple warned members of the Bundestag they may have been hacked with government-backed spyware that steals messages and location data. Germany's cybersecurity office warned that Bundestag members and other officials received Apple threat notifications indicating they were targeted by government-backed spyware attacks…
Apple warns German politicians
Germany's federal cybersecurity office, the BSI, said members of the Bundestag and other notable individuals received Apple threat notifications warning they may have been targeted by cyberattacks.
What the spyware does
Apple's threat notifications warn of spyware that can steal messages, location data and other sensitive information from phones.
Government response
German government spokesperson Stefan Kornelius said Berlin was taking the incident very seriously but did not say who in the federal government had been targeted, including whether Chancellor Friedrich Merz was among them.
“taking the incident and the warning very seriously”
Attacks spread beyond Germany
Radwan Mortada, a Beirut-based filmmaker, received a new threat notification after an earlier spyware attack targeted him in twenty twenty-one. Apple said its latest threat notifications went out to users in ninety-nine countries.
Who builds the spyware
Governments rarely build spyware themselves.Many buy from private vendors called mercenary spyware makers, with Israel's NSO Group being the best known, selling the controversial Pegasus spyware.
Attacker remains unknown
It is unclear who is behind this latest round of spyware attacks or which government may have orchestrated the targeting of German lawmakers and officials across ninety-nine countries.
The takeaway
Germany's cybersecurity office warned that Bundestag members and other officials received Apple threat notifications indicating they were targeted by government-backed spyware attacks.
