Apple has issued another round of notifications to users it believes were targeted with spyware capable of compromising iPhone, iPad, or Mac devices. The company occasionally sends these alerts to inform customers that they may have been targeted with spyware typically used by governments.
Scope of the notifications
Apple told TechCrunch that it sent the latest notifications on Thursday to users targeted in 110 countries. To date, Apple says it has notified customers in over 150 countries, providing a sense of how widely government‑grade spyware has been used around the world.
How the alerts arrive and what they say
The warnings appear directly on affected iPhones as lock‑screen push notifications and urge recipients to take action. Apple says it updated the user experience to make it easier for recipients to access important guidance on next steps.
The push notification reads: “Apple detected a mercenary spyware attack targeted at your iPhone. There are actions you can take now to protect your data and device.” Apple also sends notifications by email and when users sign in to their accounts.
Recommended actions for recipients
Apple advises taking such notifications seriously and acting immediately to protect the device and data. The push notification links to advice on who to contact for help and recommends enabling Lockdown Mode, a security feature that Apple says makes it much harder for spyware attacks to succeed.
According to Apple, it has not seen any cases where a device was hacked while Lockdown Mode was enabled.
Expert perspective and broader context
John Scott‑Railton, a senior researcher at Citizen Lab, first highlighted the latest batch of notifications in a thread on X. Scott‑Railton told TechCrunch the new push notifications are a “big improvement” in prompting people to seek assistance and secure their devices since Apple introduced its spyware alerts in 2021. He said notifications create a critical signal that a community is being targeted: some alerted users seek help, which often triggers investigations that uncover many additional cases.
Scott‑Railton also cited the ongoing scandal in Poland involving the former government’s alleged use of spyware against political rivals, saying that without Apple’s notifications the scope of that abuse might not have been exposed.
Conclusion
While spyware attacks remain relatively rare overall, the proliferation of surveillance technology in recent years has enabled governments to abuse these tools against critics and civil society. Apple’s expanding notifications — now reaching users in more than 150 countries — are an important mechanism for rapidly informing potentially affected people and encouraging immediate protective measures.
