Apple to Release New ‘Lockdown Mode’ as It Battles Spyware Firms

Apple to Release New ‘Lockdown Mode’ as It Battles Spyware Firms
A customer holds the new green colour Apple iPhone 13 pro shortly after it went on sale inside the Apple Store on 5th Avenue in Manhattan in New York on March 18, 2022. Mike Segar/Reuters
Reuters
Updated:

Apple Inc. on Wednesday said it plans to release a new feature called “Lockdown Mode” this fall that aims to add a new layer of protection for human rights advocates, political dissidents, and other targets of sophisticated hacking attacks.

The move comes after at least two Israeli firms have exploited flaws in Apple’s software to remotely break into iPhones without the target needing to click or tap anything. NSO Group, the maker of the “Pegasus” software that can carry out such attacks, has been sued by Apple and placed on a trade blacklist by U.S. officials.