The secrets of one of the world’s most prominent surveillance companies, Gamma Group, spilled onto the Internet last week, courtesy of ananonymous leaker who appears to have gained access to sensitive corporate documents. And while they provide illuminating details about the capabilities of Gamma’s many spy tools, perhaps the most surprising revelation is about something the company is unable to do: It can’t hack into your typical iPhone.
Android phones, some Blackberries and phones running older Microsoft operating systems all are vulnerable to Gamma’s spyware, called FinSpy, which can turn your smart phone into a potent surveillance device. Users of the spyware are capable of listening to calls on targeted devices, stealing contacts, activating the microphone, tracking your location and more. But for FinSpy to hack into an iPhone, its owner must have already stripped away much of its built-in security through a process called “jailbreaking.” No jailbreak, no FinSpy on your iPhone, at least according to a leakedGamma document dated April 2014.
Related articles
- World’s Top Surveillance Spyware Hacked! 40GB of Data Shows Governments Using Apple Mail, Skype Calls and More for Interception and Spying (wccftech.com)
- Gamma International: Leaked Data ‘Confirms UK Spyware Export to Bahrain’ (ibtimes.co.uk)
- Gamma FinFisher hacked: 40 GB of internal documents and source code of government malware published (1newsjunkie.blogspot.com)
- A Hacker Claims to Have Leaked 40GB of Docs on Government Spy Tool FinFisher (motherboard.vice.com)
- FinFisher Government Spy Software Secrets Revealed by Hackers (tripwire.com)
- European Tech Company Helped Bahrain Government Spy On Arab Spring Activists (mintpressnews.com)
- Gamma International Hacked and 40GB Data Leaked (eteknix.com)
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