WikiLeaks is back at it again, this time with more than 8,700 leaked documents apparently from inside the CIA’s Center for Cyber Intelligence. According to those documents, the CIA had knowledge of zero-day exploits it could use to hack iPhones. But Apple said many of those bugs have already been patched with the latest version of iOS.
The WikiLeaks documents didn’t include details of the bugs or whether the CIA has actually used them, so it’s unclear if or how Apple knows the exploits have been patched. But the company released a statement to multiple media outlets following the WikiLeaks dump on Tuesday:
“Apple is deeply committed to safeguarding our customers’ privacy and security. The technology built into today’s iPhone represents the best data security available to consumers, and we’re constantly working to keep it that way. Our products and software are designed to quickly get security updates into the hands of our customers, with nearly 80 percent of users running the latest version of our operating system. While our initial analysis indicates that many of the issues leaked today were already patched in the latest OS, we will continue work to rapidly address any identified vulnerabilities. We always urge customers to download the latest iOS to make sure they have the most recent security updates.”
Apple wasn’t the only company whose devices the CIA was attempting to crack or had already hacked. According to the WikiLeaks documents, in 2016 the agency had 24 zero-day exploits for Android and one specific attack, called “Weeping Angel,” which targets Samsung’s smart TVs. The attack allows the CIA to use the TV as a microphone, which records conversation sand than transmits them back to a CIA server.
Samsung told BuzzFeed on Wednesday that the company is “aware of the report in question and are urgently looking into the matter.”