I'm concerned there might be spyware on my iPhone, which is an iPhone 12 Pro Max running iOS 15.6.
I do have Malware bytes on my phone.
My phone is not a 'jailbroken' phone. Anybody have any recommendations on anti- spyware apps?
Thanks,
Steve
General concern, particular issues or errors shown, are you a criminal or investigative journalist or political dissident or are you with direct or indirect access to sensitive or classified or financial data, or do you have any particularly rich entities unusually interested in you?
It’s unlikely for most of us, unless it’s been downloaded onto the iPhone by someone with access, or unless you’re a target of a very wealthy adversary.
Most “spyware” around works by accessing iCloud or local backups, which means securing your Apple ID and encrypting local backups. The expensive tools are targeted at very specific individuals, based on all available evidence.
No app store apps can scan your iPhone, for instance. Not absent an exploit, or more commonly series of exploits.
If you’re concerned about your security and privacy, update your passwords and passcode and password-reset paths, enable two-factor authentication, set up a trusted recovery contact, set your trusted telephone number, keep updated to current, and related steps. Maybe reset and reload your iPhone, and install only the apps you know and want and need, as malware persisting across a reset is Really Rare.
Some reading: https://help.apple.com/pdf/personal-safety/en_US/personal-safety-user-guide.pdf
General concern, particular issues or errors shown, are you a criminal or investigative journalist or political dissident or are you with direct or indirect access to sensitive or classified or financial data, or do you have any particularly rich entities unusually interested in you?
It’s unlikely for most of us, unless it’s been downloaded onto the iPhone by someone with access, or unless you’re a target of a very wealthy adversary.
Most “spyware” around works by accessing iCloud or local backups, which means securing your Apple ID and encrypting local backups. The expensive tools are targeted at very specific individuals, based on all available evidence.
No app store apps can scan your iPhone, for instance. Not absent an exploit, or more commonly series of exploits.
If you’re concerned about your security and privacy, update your passwords and passcode and password-reset paths, enable two-factor authentication, set up a trusted recovery contact, set your trusted telephone number, keep updated to current, and related steps. Maybe reset and reload your iPhone, and install only the apps you know and want and need, as malware persisting across a reset is Really Rare.
Some reading: https://help.apple.com/pdf/personal-safety/en_US/personal-safety-user-guide.pdf
I don't know that my cellphone has been hacked, it's not behaving differently. I am concerned about security overall, have had an increased number of attempts. I work with some high profile clients who are targets; I often get caught up in the 'unwanted attention'. Bob, your answer is about what I thought, just wanted to be sure I wasn't behind the curve on threats.
There have been and are zero-click exploits around. Fully remote. No local access required. If you’re worth targeting. They’re rarely used widely, but the available tools do get used by some well-funded entities. Apple is releasing a feature known as lockdown in iOS 16, though how much that will increase the difficulty of use and the difficulty of attack is unclear.
Here’s a (non-partisan) write-up on some additional steps to consider:
https://democrats.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Device-and-Account-Security-Checklist.pdf
The iPhone cannot be hacked unless someone has possession of the phone for 30-60 minutes.....and....they know your Apple ID and Password.
Why do you think that your phone has been hacked?
Concern about possible spyware on my iPhone
