Apple has denied allegations that it helped US authorities spy on Russian iPhone users.
Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) on Thurs. claimed it uncovered a US National Security Agency (NSA) operation which hacked several 1,000 iPhones using sophisticated surveillance software.
The US intelligence agency was allegedly able to use specifically designed “software vulnerabilities” to infect Apple’s phones with previously unknown malware, according to Russia’s foreign ministry.
Soviet Union
The FSB claimed the espionage operation targeted devices belonging to former Soviet Union members & Russian-based foreign diplomats, including those from Israel, China & NATO.
The successor to Russia’s Soviet-era KGB suggested that the plot showed “close cooperation” between Apple & the NSA, the US national security agency tasked with collecting & monitoring data.
The FSB stated: “The company provides American intelligence agencies with a wide range of opportunities to monitor any persons of interest to the White House & their partners in anti-Russian activities, & their own citizens.”
Denial
Apple has denied these claims. The California-based company observed: “We have never worked with any Govt. to insert a backdoor into any Apple product & never will.”
According to the FSB, it discovered the covert campaign in collaboration with Russia’s Federal Guards Service, which provides security to the Kremlin.
“The US intelligence services have been using IT corporations for decades in order to collect large-scale data of Internet users without their knowledge,” claimed Russia’s Foreign Ministry.
No Evidence
However, the FSB has provided no evidence that Apple co-operated with the NSA or had any awareness of its alleged spying plot.
Kaspersky Lab, a Moscow-based antivirus company, has since reported that an undisclosed number of workers’ iPhones were targeted in “an extremely complex, professionally targeted cyber-attack”.
The cyber-security firm claimed that spyware was installed through vulnerabilities in Apple’s iOS operating system, which then transmitted information from phones to remote servers.
Kaspersky Lab
The attack is beleived to have targeted devices belonging to Kaspersky Lab’s “top & middle-management”.
The incident is likely to increase tensions between Apple & Russia officials, which have long queried the security of US technology.
It comes after the Kremlin ordered officials involved with Russia’s upcoming 2024 presidential election to stop using iPhones amid security concerns, the Kommersant newspaper reported.
