MeitY Issues Notice to Apple After Spyware Alerts Sent to Indian Users

New Delhi: The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has sent a formal notice to Apple following a new wave of "mercenary spyware" threat notifications issued by the tech giant to users in India.
The government's action comes as the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) has simultaneously released an advisory urging affected users to take immediate security measures and contact the agency for technical assistance.

Spyware Attacks Trigger Government Concern

On December 2 and 3, global tech firms Apple and Google sent out threat notifications to select users worldwide, alerting them that they may have been targeted by advanced, state-backed spyware. In India, several high-profile individuals, including opposition politicians and journalists, reportedly received these alerts.

Cybersecurity experts view the recurring alerts as a serious escalation, highlighting the growing risk of highly sophisticated commercial spyware being misused.

CERT-In's Advisory and Recommendations

In response to the situation, CERT-In, the national agency for computer emergencies, issued Advisory CIAD-2025-0048. The advisory confirms Apple's warning of attempts to "remotely compromise the iPhone associated with their Apple ID" and advises users to take the following steps:

Update Immediately: Install the latest software update, specifically iOS 26.1.

Enhance Security: Update messaging and cloud applications, and enable Lockdown Mode on their devices.

“It is reported that Apple issued notifications to its users across the world including India about being targeted by mercenary spyware attackers who are trying to remotely compromise the iPhone associated with their Apple ID. The notification also recommends users to take additional safeguards to protect data on their device, such as updating their iPhone (latest version iOS 26.1) and any other Apple devices they use to the latest software version, update messaging and clouds app to the latest available version, and enabling Lockdown Mode,” read the advisory. 

Call for Technical Assistance

Crucially, the advisory also asks users who received the notification and wish to have their devices examined to reach out to CERT-In directly via email: submitmobile@cert-in.org.in.
CERT-In has strictly warned affected users not to make any changes to their phones, such as resetting, deleting applications, or restarting, before contacting the agency, as these actions could tamper with or destroy critical forensic evidence. The Indian government is awaiting a formal response from Apple regarding the threat notifications and the source of the suspected attacks.

Read More: Apple iOS 26.2 Coming Soon With Lock Screen Tweaks, Sleep Score Changes, and Everyday Upgrades