iPhone hacking row: RaGa attacks Modi government over alleged phone-tapping
What's the story
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday attacked the Centre over Apple's warning to various opposition leaders about potential state-sponsored attackers attempting to hack their iPhones. Gandhi challenged the government, saying, "You can tap (phones) as much as you want. I don't care. If you want, I can give my phone to you. We are not afraid. We are fighting." Several opposition leaders, including Shashi Tharoor, Mahua Moitra, Raghav Chadha, and Akhilesh Yadav, have received Apple's threat alert on tuesday.
Details
Gandhi targets Modi government over alleged Adani links
In a press conference, Gandhi accused the central government of being controlled by the Adani Group, asserting that Gautam Adani holds power over Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He reiterated his claim that "the PM works for Adani," alleging the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the Centre and its "financial system is directly linked with Adani."
Twitter Post
Watch: Gandhi addresses media after phone-tapping allegations
LIVE: Media Interaction | AICC HQ, New Delhi https://t.co/OgZmhUA5WB
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) October 31, 2023
What Next?
Opposition leaders receive Apple's warning
Apple's warning messages were reportedly received by several opposition leaders from the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) and some journalists. The company allegedly alerted them that potential state-sponsored attackers were attempting to compromise their iPhones remotely. Apple, however, later clarified that it does not attribute these threat notifications to any particular state-sponsored attacker. On its website, the iPhone maker says that detecting state-sponsored attacks depends on threat intelligence signals, which can be flawed or incomplete.
Insights
Union IT minister dismisses opposition's claims
Meanwhile, Union Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has dismissed the allegations that the government was involved in attempts to hack opposition leaders' iPhones. He referred to Apple's advisory as "vague" that was based on "certain estimations." The company claimed its encryption system is of "the highest possible order," he added. Vishnaw asserted that Apple had issued similar notifications in 150 countries, saying some could be "false alarms."
Twitter Post
'We are not afraid': Gandhi
इधर तोते की गर्दन पकड़ी, उधर क्रूर राजा तड़प रहा है!
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) October 31, 2023
जितनी जासूसी करनी है कर लो - हम डरने वाले नहीं, लड़ने वाले हैं। pic.twitter.com/BNoSHy2eFp
Apple
Apple's threat notification system explained
In its alert statement, Apple reportedly said that threat notifications aim to inform users who might be targeted by "state-sponsored attackers." As per its support page, these users could be targeted because of "who they are or what they do." State-sponsored attacks are highly sophisticated and expensive with a short shelf-life, making them challenging to identify and intercept, it says. Threat notifications have been dispatched to iPhone users in nearly 150 countries, per Apple.
Pegasus
Pegasus spyware scandal of 2021
The latest incident is reminiscent of the 2021 Pegasus scandal in India. At the time, Pegasus Project investigations revealed that Pegasus spyware targeted mobile devices of over 300 people in India, including opposition politicians, journalists, and activists, among others. Pegasus is a military-grade spyware developed by the Israel-based company NSO Group. It is accessible to verified government clients. When the Pegasus Project findings surfaced, the BJP's central government faced accusations of acquiring Pegasus to snoop on its critics.