How to identify if your iPhone has been hacked

Post Pegasus debacle you might be wary if  whether your phone is actually secure, your worries are not unfounded, it is always better to be safe than sorry. If you want to know whether your phone might be hacked follow the steps below to make sure.

Here’s how to tell whether your iPhone has been hacked

1. If you have noticed you are prone to getting pop up’s containing inappropriate content
2. Calls initiated from your phone which you were previously unaware of
3. Suspiciously high data being consumed but not by you
4. Battery is drained out faster than usual
5. Unusual activity spotted in your social media accounts
6. You have stopped receiving calls and messages which means the hacker has gotten your sim cloned from your service provider.
7. Noticed any apps downloaded on your device without your knowledge

Here are a few things to do when you know you’ve been hacked

1.  First off, install and run an anti-malware software application to rid of any malware on your phone
2. Delete all unrecognizable application
3. Contact your service provider if you have stopped receiving calls and messages
4. Rest your phone and passwords
5. And finally inform your contacts to make sure the hacker hasn’t sent any messages through your phone  impersonating you.

Pegasus was first brought to everyone’s attention when they made headlines after attacking 1,400 journalists and human rights activists in India. What is worrying about Pegasus is that they keep updating their malware so if experts crack a certain spyware it is of not much use. On July 18, 2019 17 media companies claimed that over 300 Indians mobile phones were targeted by NSO. The people whose phones were hacked  includes BJP ministers, opposition leaders, top lawyers, businessmen, rights activists and journalists.

Israeli company, NSO group’s Pegasus spyware is ‘a big black hole’ and near impossible to crack ‘as the company keeps updating its modus operandi on how to attack mobile phones with malware,’ says cyber expert Sandeep Shukla

This is not a cause of worry for iOS users only but it might be that android users are more prone to such attacks.

As per a report by Norton, Apple offers better security to iOS users, but this doesn’t mean that they cannot be hacked. Android phones are more prone to hacking and as per Malwarebytes report, there has been a rise in pre-installed malware and adware on the devices of Android users, with the goal to either steal data or steal attention writes Business Insider.