As a journalist working for the Arab news network Alaraby, Rania Dridi said she¡¯s taken precautions to avoid being targeted by hackers, keeping an eye out for suspicious messages and avoiding clicking on links or opening attachments from people she doesn¡¯t know.
Dridi¡¯s phone got compromised anyway with what¡¯s called a ¡°zero-click¡± attack, which allows a hacker to break into a phone or computer even if its user doesn¡¯t open a malicious link or attachment. Hackers instead exploit a series of security flaws in operating systems ¡ª such as Apple Inc.¡¯s iOS or Google¡¯s Android ¡ª to breach a device without having to dupe their victim into taking any action. Once inside, they can install spyware capable of stealing data, listening in on calls and tracking the user¡¯s location.
With people more wary than ever about clicking on suspicious links in emails and text messages, zero-click hacks are being used more frequently by government agencies to spy on activists, journalists and others, according to more than a dozen surveillance company employees, security researchers and hackers.
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