China linked to full-scale attack on iPhone users

BlackBerry experts have accused Chinese hackers of being involved in a full-scale attack on Apple smartphone users. This was reported by Appleinsider with reference to a research report.

In the article, security experts recalled that in early April, Apple warned users around the world about impending attacks. BlackBerry experts said that similar attacks have already been carried out and will be carried out using a “sophisticated iOS implant” called LightSpy, which is behind hackers from China.

According to engineers, the LightSpy attack was first carried out during political tensions in Hong Kong in 2020. During the attack, hackers remotely contacted the victim’s iPhone and hacked the device’s security. They were able to use the user’s personal documents and media files, as well as read content in his messengers.

LightSpy also allows you to secretly record sound from the device’s microphone and analyze calls. In addition, an infected phone can transmit “super-specific” data about the user’s geolocation, which makes it possible to determine his location with maximum accuracy.

BlackBerry experts cited code comments and LightSpy error messages written in Chinese as proof of the involvement of Chinese hackers. Experts also raised concerns that the organization behind the attacks is connected to the Chinese authorities.

At the end of October, security experts described a way to hack any Apple gadget. The iLeakage vulnerability is based on a bug in the Apple WebKit engine that powers the Safari browser.