New China-Linked Spyware Threat Could Have Made Apple Alert iPhone Users In India And More Countries

Apple’s latest iPhone spyware threat alert could have been sparked because of a dangerous spyware that has alleged links to China. The details of the new threat comes via the BlackBerry Threat Research and Intelligence Team this month, which suggests iPhone users in India and other countries in the South Asia region may have been targeted by the bad actors.

The security body claims the spyware implant called LightSpy might be back in business, which is a clear warning to individuals who might be targeted by these attackers. And the spyware threat alert that Apple had sent out without giving the details of the origin or the nature of the attack, could be linked to LightSpy, the report dated April 11, 2024, adds.

The spyware was first discovered back in 2020 by security researchers at Trend Micro and Kaspersky. But its supposed re-entry into the news suggests a concerning development, not only for Apple and its customers but the law enforcement agencies in these parts of the world, where we will be seeing major elections happen this year.

LightSpy Spyware Threat For iPhone Users: What We Know

Security experts view LighSpy as an iOS backdoor attack spread using the watering hole attacks, which refers to attacks done by infecting popular websites and targeting people when they visit these infected websites and get access to their system or mobile.

The BlackBerry security agency claims the latest spyware attack may have been coordinated via news websites that may have been infected and visited by the targeted individuals to implant LightSpy onto their device. Typically, this spyware is capable of gathering information like your phone contacts, SMS messages, your exact location and sound bytes from VoIP calls.

However, the latest version of LightSpy discovered this month is also able to steal files and data from popular apps like Telegram, WeChat, the iCloud KeyChain data and your web browser history from Safari as well as Chrome, the agency highlights.

The biggest concern about the new spyware threat is that while further digging into the source code of the implant, the BlackBerry Threat Intelligence team hinted at the possible links with China which suggests a possible state-sponsored attack on the iPhone users through the new avatar of LightSpy. “The targeting of individuals in Southern Asia, coupled with the suspected Chinese origin of the attackers, raises concerns about the potential motives and geopolitical implications of this campaign,” it pointed out.

“The expanded capabilities of the malware, including extensive data exfiltration, audio surveillance, and potential full device control, pose a severe risk to targeted individuals and organisations in Southern Asia,” BlackBerry’s security group shared this alarming point in its detailed post.