Apple has issued urgent notifications to users across over 150 countries, warning of targeted spyware attacks and urging immediate protective actions amid a growing global threat of sophisticated malware campaigns.
Apple is once again warning customers that their devices may have been targeted by mercenary spyware, in a fresh wave of notifications that the company says should be taken seriously even though they do not always mean a device has already been breached. According to TechCrunch, the latest alerts were sent to users in 110 countries, and Apple says it has now notified customers in more than 150 countries over several years, underscoring how widely such campaigns have spread.
The company’s message is aimed at iPhone, iPad and Mac users who may have been singled out because of who they are or what they do. Apple’s support guidance says the alert will arrive as a push notification on the device itself and will direct the recipient to take immediate protective steps. The wording is designed to be clear: “Apple has detected an attack with spyware targeting your iPhone. There are steps you can take now to help protect your data and device.”
Apple recommends that recipients treat the warning as urgent and follow the instructions provided, including seeking expert help and turning on Lockdown Mode. Introduced in 2022, the feature is intended for people at higher risk of targeted attacks, including journalists, activists and lawyers. Apple says it has not recorded a successful spyware compromise on any device with Lockdown Mode enabled, a point echoed by TechCrunch, MacRumors and TechRadar in their reporting on the feature.
The latest warnings also reflect a broader pattern. TechCrunch reported in 2024 that Apple had already sent similar threat notices to users in 92 countries, and that the company has been issuing them regularly since 2021. Security researchers say these campaigns often rely on highly sophisticated exploits, including zero-click techniques that do not require the victim to tap a link or open a file. That makes Apple’s notifications one of the few direct signals that a user may be under targeted surveillance.
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