Apple Responds to Allegations of Hacking Attempts on Indian Opposition MPs’ iPhones،
Controversy emerged in India when leaders of various opposition parties claimed to have received alerts from Apple, warning them of potential attempts to hack their iPhones by “state-sponsored” actors. The situation led to a political storm with reactions from both the opposition and the ruling party.
Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Congress party, attacked the Narendra Modi government over the alerts at a press conference, saying: “Do as much wiretapping as you want, I don’t care.” » He said several people in his office, as well as leaders of different parties, had received the message and accused the government of trying to distract the youth.
In response, Apple released a statement clarifying that it “does not attribute threat notifications to any specific state-sponsored attacker.”
What happened?
Several opposition MPs from different parties said they had received alerts from Apple, warning them of potential hacking attempts on their iPhones. Prominent leaders including Mahua Moitra, Akhilesh Yadav, Raghav Chadha, Sitaram Yechury and Pawan Khera shared their experiences on social media.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party responds
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dismissed the opposition’s concerns, saying Apple should clarify alerts sent to individuals, including opposition leaders. Ravi Shankar Prasad, a senior BJP leader, encouraged MPs to take up the issue with Apple and file official reports.
The message sent by Apple warned recipients that “state-sponsored attackers may target” their iPhones, highlighting the potential risks associated with compromised devices.
This controversy has also spread beyond India: Ugandan political leaders and individuals in around 150 countries have reportedly received similar notices.
Apple addresses the issue in an official statement
Following opposition phone hacking allegations, the iPhone maker released a statement clarifying: “Apple does not attribute threat notifications to any specific state-sponsored attacker. »
The statement goes on to explain: “State-sponsored attackers are extremely well-funded and sophisticated, and their tactics are continually evolving. Identifying such attacks relies on threat intelligence signals that are often imperfect and incomplete. It is conceivable that some Apple threat notifications are false alerts, or that some attacks go unnoticed. We cannot disclose the details that trigger these threat notifications, as doing so could help state-sponsored attackers adapt their methods to avoid detection.
The Minister of IT speaks
Speaking on the issue, Union Minister for Communications, Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw said, “The government is concerned about this issue and will get to the bottom of it . There is compulsive criticism in the country. These people cannot see the development of the country because when their family was in power, they only thought of themselves. Apple has published this notice in 150 countries…”
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