An Israeli-based company that offers security services to U.S. government agencies boasts that it has the technology to crack into latest iPhone models. Cellebrite researchers claim that they were able to bypass the security features of the Apple devices running the iOS 11.
If it is correct, the news is a major breakthrough for U.S. law enforcement agencies, which have been battling Apple in the nation’s courts about unlocking the devices of some suspects for years. However, this means that Apple can no longer guarantee iPhone users’ privacy.
Cellebrite has contracts with multiple federal agencies like the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the FBI. These agencies resort to the Israeli firm to help them break into mobile devices.
So far, law enforcement agencies have been unsuccessful in unlocking some iPhone models because of the handsets’ impressive encryption. A report from Forbes shows that Cellebrite lures in new customers by telling them that it has the technological know-how to break into even the iPhone models powered by iOS 11.
iOS Devices No Longer Hack-Proof
iOS 11 is the operating system of the iPhone 8 models and the iPhone X, and was rolled out last fall. The mobile OS, which is the latest, comes with new security features hat makes it harder for law enforcement agencies and hackers to crack into the phones.
Apple has not provided a comment on the revelations.
According to the Forbes report, the security contractor did not officially unveil the new hacking capabilities. The fact that it can hack into any iPhone model has been largely kept secret and shared only with interested parties.
Forbes found that the firm’s sales representatives make such claims when advertising Cellebrite’s services to private forensic firms and government agencies worldwide. The company reportedly boasts of being able to crack into most Android and iPhone devices.
Image Source: Flickr