CERT-In has started its probe in the Apple threat notification issue raised by opposition MPs, and a notice has been sent to the company, IT Secretary S Krishnan said on Thursday.

He hoped that Apple would cooperate with the investigation by CERT-In on the issue.

"CERT-In has started its probe... they (Apple) will cooperate in this probe," Krishnan told reporters on the sidelines of an event related to the Meity-NSF research collaboration.

Indian Computer Emergency Response Team or CERT-In is the national nodal agency for responding to computer security incidents as and when they occur.

Asked if a notice has been sent to Apple, the IT Secretary answered in the affirmative.

Several Opposition leaders on October 31 claimed they have received an alert from Apple warning them of "state-sponsored attackers trying to remotely compromise" their iPhones and alleged hacking by the government, a charge IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw rejected but assured a thorough probe.

Those who received such notifications included Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, party leaders Shashi Tharoor, Pawan Khera, K C Venugopal, Supriya Shrinate, T S Singhdeo and Bhupinder S Hooda; Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav.

CERT-In has started its probe in the Apple threat notification issue raised by opposition MPs, and a notice has been sent to the company, IT Secretary S Krishnan said on Thursday.

CERT-In has started its probe in the Apple threat notification issue raised by opposition MPs, and a notice has been sent to the company, IT Secretary S Krishnan said on Thursday. He hoped that Apple would cooperate with the investigation by CERT-In on the issue. "CERT-In has started its probe... they (Apple) will cooperate in this probe," Krishnan told reporters on the sidelines of an event related to the Meity-NSF research collaboration. Indian Computer Emergency Response Team or CERT-In is the national nodal agency for responding to computer security incidents as and when they occur. Asked if a notice has been sent to Apple, the IT Secretary answered in the affirmative. Several Opposition leaders on October 31 claimed they have received an alert from Apple warning them of "state-sponsored attackers trying to remotely compromise" their iPhones and alleged hacking by the government, a charge IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw rejected but assured a thorough probe. Those who received such notifications included Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, party leaders Shashi Tharoor, Pawan Khera, K C Venugopal, Supriya Shrinate, T S Singhdeo and Bhupinder S Hooda; Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav.

Indian officials begin probe into politicians' iPhone hacking attempt alert

Amid worldwide uproar over NSO's Pegasus surveillance software allegedly used by various government agencies on individuals, Google in a blog post has tried to explain how the Israel-based company hacked into iPhones without anybody's knowledge.

Google said it is aware "NSO sells similar zero-click capabilities which target Android devices". It said that the "one-click exploit" occurs when a person's phone is being hacked when the link is clicked once.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/amid-spyware-row-nso-may-shut-down-pegasus-unit-436902">Also Read:&nbsp;Amid spyware row, NSO may shut down Pegasus unit</a>

Google described how the Pegasus software hacked into iPhones. The search giant said in the post that NSO is now offering their clients "zero-click exploitation technology" allowing an attack on a person's phone even when the user hasn't clicked on a phishing link.&nbsp;

"In the zero-click scenario no user interaction is required," the blog post said. This means the attacker targeting a specific person does not need to send a phishing message since it works "silently in the background".

Watch:&nbsp;French President Macron changes phone after Pegasus case

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/frances-macron-changes-phone-in-light-of-pegasus-case-400090/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

"It's a weapon against which there is no defence," the Google post added. A person therefore can be targeted just for using a phone citing the Apple attack. A person with a phone number or an AppleID username can become a target, it informed.&nbsp;

Google said the "initial entry point" for Pegasus on the iPhone was the iMessage.

The Pegasus software uses GIF files in iMessages to target users. It uses the "fake gif" trick to hack into phones covertly even as the person remains unaware.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science-tech/pegasus-snooping-effect-apple-to-alert-users-whenever-iphones-get-hacked-by-spyware-432997">Also Read:&nbsp;&nbsp;Apple to alert users whenever iPhones get hacked by spyware</a>

The US government had recently blacklisted the NSO group since it supplied spyware to foreign governments that used tools to "maliciously target" government officials, journalists, business people and activists.

The post said Apple worked on the problem and fixed it in September this year as it released a new iOS update.

(With inputs from Agencies)

Amid worldwide uproar over NSO's Pegasus surveillance software allegedly used by various government agencies on individuals, Google in a blog post has tried to explain how the Israel-based company hacked into iPhones without anybody's knowledge.

Amid worldwide uproar over NSO's Pegasus surveillance software allegedly used by various government agencies on individuals, Google in a blog post has tried to explain how the Israel-based company hacked into iPhones without anybody's knowledge. Google said it is aware "NSO sells similar zero-click capabilities which target Android devices". It said that the "one-click exploit" occurs when a person's phone is being hacked when the link is clicked once. Also Read: Amid spyware row, NSO may shut down Pegasus unit Google described how the Pegasus software hacked into iPhones. The search giant said in the post that NSO is now offering their clients "zero-click exploitation technology" allowing an attack on a person's phone even when the user hasn't clicked on a phishing link. "In the zero-click scenario no user interaction is required," the blog post said. This means the attacker targeting a specific person does not need to send a phishing message since it works "silently in the background". Watch: French President Macron changes phone after Pegasus case "It's a weapon against which there is no defence," the Google post added. A person therefore can be targeted just for using a phone citing the Apple attack. A person with a phone number or an AppleID username can become a target, it informed. Google said the "initial entry point" for Pegasus on the iPhone was the iMessage. The Pegasus software uses GIF files in iMessages to target users. It uses the "fake gif" trick to hack into phones covertly even as the person remains unaware. Also Read: Apple to alert users whenever iPhones get hacked by spyware The US government had recently blacklisted the NSO group since it supplied spyware to foreign governments that used tools to "maliciously target" government officials, journalists, business people and activists. The post said Apple worked on the problem and fixed it in September this year as it released a new iOS update. (With inputs from Agencies)

'Zero-click exploitation': Google describes how NSO's Pegasus hacked into iPhones

Six months ago, a hacker discovered that the iPhone and other Apple devices could be remotely hijacked and turned into a surveillance tool. Molly Gambhir brings you a report.

Gravitas: This loophole allowed a hacker to remotely hack an iPhone

Google security experts uncovered an "indiscriminate" hacking operation that targeted iPhones over a period of at least two years and used websites to implant malicious software to access photos, user locations and other data.

In a post on Thursday on the blog of Google's Project Zero security taskforce, cyber experts did not name the hacked websites hosting the attacks, but estimated they received thousands of visitors a week. &nbsp;

"Simply visiting the hacked site was enough for the exploit server to attack your device, and if it was successful, install a monitoring implant," said Project Zero's Ian Beer.

Once installed, the malicious software "primarily focused on stealing files and uploading live location data," Beer said, adding it had been able to access encrypted messenger apps like Telegram, WhatsApp and iMessage.

Google hangouts and Gmail had also been affected, he added in the post, which provided a detailed breakdown of how the malicious software targeted and exploited iPhone vulnerabilities.

Most of the vulnerabilities targeted were found in the iPhone's default Safari web browser, Beer said, adding that the Project Zero team had discovered them in almost every operating system from iOS 10 through to the current iOS 12 version.

Once embedded in a user's iPhone, the malicious software sent back stolen data, including live user location data back to a "command and control server" every 60 seconds.

Beer said Google had informed Apple of the attacks in February, and Apple subsequently released a security patch for the iOS 12.1.

Long the driver of Apple's money-making machine, iPhone revenue overall was down 12 percent from last year to $26 billion.

The tech giant sent out invitations on Thursday to a September event at its Silicon Valley campus where it is expected to unveil a new-generation iPhone.

Google security experts uncovered an "indiscriminate" hacking operation that targeted iPhones over a period of at least two years and used websites to implant malicious software to access photos, user locations and other data.

Google security experts uncovered an "indiscriminate" hacking operation that targeted iPhones over a period of at least two years and used websites to implant malicious software to access photos, user locations and other data. In a post on Thursday on the blog of Google's Project Zero security taskforce, cyber experts did not name the hacked websites hosting the attacks, but estimated they received thousands of visitors a week. "Simply visiting the hacked site was enough for the exploit server to attack your device, and if it was successful, install a monitoring implant," said Project Zero's Ian Beer. Once installed, the malicious software "primarily focused on stealing files and uploading live location data," Beer said, adding it had been able to access encrypted messenger apps like Telegram, WhatsApp and iMessage. Google hangouts and Gmail had also been affected, he added in the post, which provided a detailed breakdown of how the malicious software targeted and exploited iPhone vulnerabilities. Most of the vulnerabilities targeted were found in the iPhone's default Safari web browser, Beer said, adding that the Project Zero team had discovered them in almost every operating system from iOS 10 through to the current iOS 12 version. Once embedded in a user's iPhone, the malicious software sent back stolen data, including live user location data back to a "command and control server" every 60 seconds. Beer said Google had informed Apple of the attacks in February, and Apple subsequently released a security patch for the iOS 12.1. Long the driver of Apple's money-making machine, iPhone revenue overall was down 12 percent from last year to $26 billion. The tech giant sent out invitations on Thursday to a September event at its Silicon Valley campus where it is expected to unveil a new-generation iPhone.

Google reveals years-long 'indiscriminate' iPhone hack

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Indian officials begin probe into politicians' iPhone hacking attempt alert

'Zero-click exploitation': Google describes how NSO's Pegasus hacked into iPhones

Gravitas: This loophole allowed a hacker to remotely hack an iPhone

Google reveals years-long 'indiscriminate' iPhone hack