Pegasus Spyware has Hacked the iPhones of the U.S. State Department Officials and Diplomats

According to various reports from Reuters and The Washington Post, Apple warned many U.S. Embassy and State Department employees that their iPhones might have been targeted by an unknown assailant using Pegasus Spyware.

Pegasus is a kind of spyware created by the Israeli cyber arms firm NSO Group that can be installed covertly on most iOS and Android phones. Pegasus infects iPhones and Android devices through zero-click exploits transmitted through messaging applications, which do not require targets to click links or take any other action but are by default banned from working on U.S. phone numbers.

At least 11 iPhones used by U.S. officials in Uganda or conducting business with the country, and locals working for the embassy, have apparently been infected with Pegasus Spyware. The identity of the threat actors after the breaches and the nature of the data sought is unknown.

Apple claims that NSO Group exploited a software vulnerability to gain access to a user’s device and install the Pegasus spyware. The problem was discovered by Citizen Lab, a University of Toronto research group, and has since been patched.

The news that Pegasus had targeted U.S. officials came only days after Apple filed a lawsuit against the NSO Group. NSO Group and its clients, according to the American technology business, carried out highly targeted cyberattacks on Apple and Android devices, gaining access to cameras, microphones, and sensitive data.

In response to the reports, the NSO Group said it would look into the situation and, if necessary, take legal action against customers who were abusing its capabilities. It also said it has stopped “relevant accounts,” citing the “severity of the allegations.”