Friday, August 26, 2016

Your iPhone could be bugged – 99mac

Late Wednesday, Apple released a security update to the operating system # IOS in the form of version 9.3.5. The update is recommended for all users, and is said to contain important safety measures. This after it emerged that the Israeli company NSO Group sold a program that can be used to eavesdrop on an iOS device. Possibly, the same method is also used to monitor Android phones.



Selling to Governments

The program is called Pegasus and can be used to track a person’s mobile phone, reading emails and other messages, identify password and record audio from the device. The Israeli company has mainly sold the program to governments, reports the New York Times. NSO Group has long emphasized the newspaper Pegasus ability to secretly track usage and keystrokes in mobiles. So far, however, it was unknown what method they used.

It all detected by the human rights activist Ahmed Mansoor in the UAE. Mansoor is a member of Human Rights Watch, and began August 10 receive suspicious text messages to his Iphone. He has previously been subject to monitoring, and became suspicious. Mansoor sent screenshots and links to the Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto, who examined the material and also got in touch with Apple.

The researchers found that the messages contained code that tried to connect to some 200 different servers . Many of them were registered with the NSO Group, and contained references to the program Pegasus. An analysis showed that the spyware used three previously unknown security hole in iOS.

Apple now has clogged the holes, and invites all its customers to update to version 9.3.5 IOS. Spokesperson Fred Sainz said:

“We advise all our clients to always download the latest version of IOS to protect themselves against potential security holes. “

Monitors journalists

In a statement, says spokesperson Zamir Dahbash for NSO Group will now only sell his program to” authorized government agencies “. According Dahbash requires NSO Group to the Pegasus is used in a lawful manner, specifically to “prevent and investigate crimes.”

It is not just Ahmed Mansoor subjected to surveillance by Pegasus. According to the New York Times, for example, also the Mexican journalist Rafael Cabrera suffered. Cabrera, among other things, examined corruption and conflict of interest among the country’s president. In several cases, the spyware adapted specifically for use against users in Yemen, Turkey, Mozambique, Kenya and the United Arab Emirates. Both activists and journalists said to be among the targets.

Bill Marczak is a researcher at the Citizen Lab, one of those who worked on discovering the monitoring. Although Apple now update the current security holes Marczak mean that similar monitoring may become increasingly common in the future. He says:

“What these activists and dissidents have been subjected to is a foretaste of what is to come. There they encounter today is what ordinary users will face tomorrow. “

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