Apple issues update after security flaws laid bare

The update comes after Ahmed Mansoor-a human rights activist located in the United Arab Emirates-had his iPhone 6 hacked through the use of a trio of previously unknown exploits which allowed attackers to jailbreak and then spy on his phone remotely.

The exploits were discovered after a human rights lawyer alerted security researchers to unsolicited text messages he had received. But instead of simple clicking the message was sent to researchers at the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab. The firms’ joint report was published Wednesday, prior to Apple’s rollout of iOS 9.3.5. He reported his findings to Lookout Security and Citizen Lab, which then performed its own investigation and reported findings to Apple.

If the user had clicked the link, the phone “would have become a digital spy in his pocket, “according to Citizen Lab, the security research group that investigated the hack”.

Owners of Apple mobile gadgets on Friday (Aug 26) were being urged to install a quickly released security update to fix flaws exposed by a sophisticated attack on an Emirati dissident.

The discovery of sophisticated spyware called “Pegasus” running on iPhones pierces the perception that Apple’s flagship device is immune from the troubles plaguing personal computers, Android phones and other consumer electronics.

One of the benefits of iOS is its tightly-integrated software and hardware.

The NSO group has denied any knowledge of this specific hack.

“The agreements signed with the company’s customers require that the company’s products only be used in a lawful manner”, he added. NSO has kept a low profile in the security world, despite its 2014 sale of a majority stake for $120 million to California private equity firm Francisco Partners. That company’s chief executive, Dipanjan Deb, did not return a call on Thursday.

Moreover, according to a senior legal adviser to Citizen Lab, Sarah McKune, Israel tries to adopt the strictures of the Wassenaar Arrangement, which puts controls on the global sale of nuclear and chemical weapons technology and even the latest cyber intrusion tools.

The Israeli embassy in Washington did not respond to an email seeking comment. Also NSO marketing material says that it has potential for Android and BlackBerry devices.

Dahbash did not answer follow-up questions, including whether the exposure of the tools use against Mansoor in UAE and a Mexican journalist would end any sales to those countries.

The Citizen Lap report states that other NSO Group zero-day targets include activists and journalists in Yemen, Turkey, Mozambique, Mexico, Kenya, and the UAE.

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That being said, Lookout does point out that it is unlikely for most people to have fallen victim to the malware.