APPLE users are being told to update their devices now to fix a bug that could have let government agencies install spyware.
A report suggests the security flaw could allow the “zero-click” install of the infamous Pegasus spyware.
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According to researchers at Citizen Lab, it’s very likely the bug led to spyware being installed on the phones of journalists, lawyers, and activists.
Apple users are advised to update to iOS 14.8, macOS Big Sur 11.6, and watchOS 7.6.2 as soon as they can.
The warning comes ahead of an Apple event this evening where the tech giant is widely speculated to be launching iOS 15.
Citizen Lab explained: “While analyzing the phone of a Saudi activist infected with NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware, we discovered a zero-day zero-click exploit against iMessage.
“The exploit, which we call FORCEDENTRY, targets Apple’s image rendering library, and was effective against Apple iOS, MacOS and WatchOS devices.”
The security experts informed Apple about the findings and the tech giant released a patch on September 13.
What is Pegasus spyware?
Pegasus is military-grade software that can be secretly uploaded onto a smartphone or device.
It’s been round since 2016 but a recent leak has brought it back into the news.
It was designed by Israeli company NSO Group, also called as Q Cyber Technologies.
The spyware can film you through your phone camera, listen to calls and even send messages from your phone.
It’s known to have targeted both Apple and Android devices.
Pegasus used to be installed on smartphones by encouraging victims to click on a link that may have been emailed or texted to them.
A new version of the spyware can load on a phone without the user needing to click anything, which is known as a “zero-click” attack.
It can avoid detection by antivirus software.
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This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk
