Apple Introduces Lockdown Mode to Protect Vulnerable Users From Spyware Attacks

Apple has announced a new security feature to protect high-risk users from cyber-attacks using spyware. Lockdown Mode will be available with the next operating system in the autumn for all of the company's iPhones, iPads, and Macs. Certain functions are disabled, and unknown users are barred from calling.

It comes after spyware was discovered on Apple devices belonging to activists, politicians, and journalists. Apple is currently suing Israeli spyware firm NSO Group, accusing it of using its powerful Pegasus spyware to target victims in 150 different countries.
The company's software has the potential to infect both iPhones and Android devices, allowing operators to extract messages, photos, and emails, record calls, and secretly activate microphones and cameras.

According to NSO Group, its tools are designed to target terrorists and criminals, and it only sells Pegasus to military, law enforcement, and intelligence agencies in countries with good human rights records. When the scope of the alleged surveillance was revealed last July, Apple was chastised by privacy and security experts for failing to protect users.

It quickly issued an emergency software update to all devices to address the vulnerability that Pegasus had been using covertly for years. Now, the company is releasing Lockdown Mode as a broader security feature that it claims will protect devices from all known spyware on the market.