Apple to Release New Lockdown Mode to Battle Spyware, Provide Extra Layer of Protection

Apple on Wednesday announced that it will release the new feature known as Lockdown Mode this fall that is designed to provide a additional layer of security to people who advocate for human rights as well as political dissidents, among other victims for sophisticated cyberattacks.

The decision is a result of the fact that at least two Israeli companies have exploited weaknesses within Apple’s program to steal remotely iPhones and other devices without victim needing to tap or click or tap anything. NSO Group, the maker of the Pegasus software which can be used to carry out these attacks, was sued by Apple and put on a blacklist of trade in the US by US officials.

Lockdown Mode is coming to the iPhones of Apple, iPads and Macs in the fall of this year. Turning it on will stop the majority of attachments to the Messages app on iPhone. Security researchers believe that that the NSO Group has exploited a weakness in the way Apple handled attachments to messages. The new setting will also prevent the wired connection to iPhones in the event that they’re locked. Israeli business Cellebrite has utilized manual connections to gain access to iPhones.

Apple representatives have stated that they believe that sophisticated attacks the new feature was created to combat known as “zero click” hacking techniques are not common and that the vast majority of users will not require activate the new mode.

Spyware companies have claimed that they market high-powered technologies to assist governments in preventing security threats to national security. Human rights organizations as well as journalists have repeatedly documented that spyware has been used by governments to harm civil society, weaken the political opposition as well as interfere with elections.

In order to help secure this new mode, Apple announced that it would offer the equivalent of $2 million (nearly 15 crore rupees). 15 crore) for every flaw security researchers discover with the new system that Apple officials claimed was the largest “bug bounty” available in the market.

Apple also stated that it is giving an estimated 10 million (nearly the equivalent of. 80 crore) donation, along with any proceeds that may result of its suit in the case against NSO Group, to groups which discover, expose, and prevent targeted hacking. Apple stated that the money will be given directly to the Dignity and Justice Fund established by the Ford Foundation, one of the biggest private foundations in the United States.