Indian Government Objects To Hacking Warning From Apple

Apple issued a hacking warning to the iPhone of journalists and opposition politicians. (doc. Apple)

JAKARTA Last October, Apple warned independent journalists and opposition politicians in India that hackers from the government were trying to access their iPhones.

This warning was widely highlighted because more than 20 people who received warnings from Apple were people who frequently criticized Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Gautam Adani, Modi's longtime ally, publicly.

Allegations of hacking by the government are reinforced by warnings received by Anand Mangnale and Ravi Nair from the Inorganized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), which consists of dozens of independent investigative media from around the world.

On a warning from Apple, Mangnale handed over his cell phone to the Forensic Analysis and the results were shared by Amnesty International to The Washington Post. From the analysis results found that there were hackers who tried to infiltrate the Mangnale iPhone.

In fact, the hacker planted Pegasus, spyware developed by Israeli company NSO Group. This spyware is only sold to the government, so this finding confirms allegations that the Indian government is trying to hack the phones of journalists and opposition.

Meanwhile, The Washington Post reported that a day after warnings of hacking attempts were issued by Apple, senior officials in the Modi administration immediately contacted representatives of the big tech company.

From an undisclosed source, it is known that the Indian government is pressuring Apple to ease the political impact of the company's warning. However, it did not explain what kind of action Apple had to take.

In addition, the government also summoned security experts Apple directly from abroad to be brought to New Delhi. They asked the expert to provide an alternative explanation regarding the warning launched.

From this effort, it can be seen that the government does not like the protection efforts made by Apple. However, there is no certainty whether the government actually used Pegasus to break into the phones of journalists and the opposition in the country.