Apple to Fix FaceTime Bug That Allows Eavesdropping

The Apple logo is displayed at the Apple store in the Brooklyn borough of New York. Apple has made the group chat function in FaceTime unavailable, Tuesday Jan. 29, 2019, after users said there was a bug that could allow callers to activate another user's microphone remotely. Mary Altaffer/AP Photo

Apple has disabled a group-chat function in FaceTime after users said a software bug could let callers activate another person’s microphone remotely.

With the bug, a FaceTime user calling another iPhone, iPad or Mac computer could hear audio — even if the receiver did not accept the call. The bug is triggered when callers add themselves to the same call to launch a group chat. That makes FaceTime think the receiver had accepted the chat.