Shortly after Apple sent Threat Notifications to at least six Thai activists and researchers who have criticized the government, saying it believed their iPhones had been targeted by “state-sponsored attacks”, the teach giant alerted a Polish prosecutor that her iPhone may have been compromised by NSO’s pegasus spyware.
Apple sends ‘Threat Notifications’ about the Pegasus attack to the first Polish iPhone users
As reported by ThinkApple, Apple sent Threat Notifications to a Polish prosecutor named Ewa Wrzosek. She was likely targeted after initiating an investigation into the so-called “Envelope elections” in which millions in Polish currency was spent on a postal vote that did not take place. The investigation was taken from her on the same day and discontinued following with disciplinary proceedings against Wrzoski. Since then the prosecutor has been vocal about criticizing the changes in the Polish judiciary after 2015.
Yesterday evening, Wrzosek took to Twitter to announce that she had received a notification from Apple about a possible state-sponsored attack on her iPhone using Pegasus. In her tweet, she asked the Minister of Justice for an explanation.
I just got an alert from @AppleSupport about a possible cyber attack on my phone by state services. With the indication that I may be targeted for what I am doing or who I am. I will take the warning seriously because it was preceded by other incidents. @ZiobroPL is it a coincidence?
Właśnie otrzymałam alert @AppleSupport o możliwym cyberataku na mój telefon ze strony służb państwowych. Ze wskazaniem, że mogę być celem ataku ze względu na to co robię lub kim jestem.
Ostrzeżenie potraktuję poważnie bo poprzedziły je inne incydenty@ZiobroPL czy to przypadek? pic.twitter.com/QWnctRMCof— e-wrzosek #FBPE🇪🇺🇵🇱🏳️🌈#FundamentalRights (@e_wrzosek) November 24, 2021
The images added in the tweet give us a first look at Apple’s security alerts which were recently announced in a support document. As per the document, Apple Threat Notifications are designed to inform and assist users who may have been targeted by state-sponsored attackers because “of who they are or what they do.”
The tech giant says that it will notify users who may be a target by sending them emails and iMessages, while a message will also appear when they log into their Apple ID on the Apple website. Note that these threat notifications will never ask users to click any links, open files, install apps or profiles, or provide their Apple ID password or verification code by email or on the phone.
The tech giant recently warned six Thai activists and researchers about their device being affected by a state-sponsored attack via these Threat Notifications. The messages warned, “if your device is compromised by a state-sponsored attacker, they may be able to remotely access your sensitive data, communications, or even the camera and microphone.”
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