Surge in Apple Users Report Spyware Threat Notifications Across 110 Countries

An unprecedented number of Apple customers have reported receiving threat notifications regarding suspected spyware attacks targeting their devices. This follows a recent warning issued by Apple to users in 110 countries on Friday, alerting them to potential spyware threats.

Apple periodically sends alerts to customers it believes may have been targeted or compromised by “mercenary spyware,” a term it uses for malware typically associated with government surveillance. Over the last few years, Apple has issued alerts to users across more than 150 countries. The recent notification wave appears to be the largest to date, according to digital rights advocates.

Mohammed Al-Maskati, director of the Access Now investigation team, reported to TechCrunch that they have seen a record number of inquiries since Friday, with calls for assistance increasing by approximately 30% to 40% compared to prior notification waves. Many individuals who previously received alerts have sought help again.

Numerous social media posts from users also indicate a significant number of people reported receiving these notifications over the weekend. Among them is a soldier from the Ukraine Armed Forces who believed the warning might be a scam until he confirmed its validity with Apple. “I was a bit surprised, to be honest. I wouldn’t have thought I was important enough for them to target me like this. I am flattered though,” he shared.

The soldier noted awareness among colleagues in his unit about similar notifications, expressing their concern. Meanwhile, the Computer Emergency Response Team of Ukraine (CERT-UA) did not respond to requests about the situation regarding Ukrainian citizens receiving such alerts.

John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at The Citizen Lab, emphasized the unusual scale and geographic spread of the notifications. He remarked, “For every public notification like this, you can imagine there’s a huge notification iceberg that the public will never learn about. This is a clear indication that something bigger is going on.”

Experts suggest that Apple’s new notification methods, which began this year, may have contributed to the surge in reported alerts. Notifications are now sent directly to users’ iPhone lock screens, within their Settings app, via their Apple-associated email, and upon logging into their Apple accounts via the web. Al-Maskati mentioned that these changes have raised awareness and made it harder for users to overlook these serious alerts.

In response to these notifications, Apple has not commented on the matter. Experts recommend that users take these alerts seriously and, if they’ve not already done so, consider enabling Lockdown Mode. This security feature is intended to enhance the protection of iPhones, iPads, and Mac computers, with Apple stating it has not seen any hacks against devices with Lockdown Mode enabled.