Apple’s worries that Indian journalists and opposition figures might have been the target of state-sponsored hacks prompted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration to launch a robust response in late October. Officials openly questioned Apple’s conclusions and launched an investigation into device security.
India has never acknowledged or denied deploying the Pegasus program, but Amnesty International revealed Thursday that it discovered NSO Group’s sophisticated spyware on the iPhones of famous Indian journalists, adding credence to Apple’s early warnings.
“Our latest findings show that journalists in India are increasingly facing the threat of unlawful surveillance simply for doing their jobs, in addition to other tools of repression such as imprisonment under draconian laws, smear campaigns, harassment, and intimidation,” said Donncha Cearbhaill, Head of Amnesty International’s Security Lab, in a blog post. 
“Despite repeated revelations, there has been a shameful lack of accountability about the use of Pegasus spyware in India, which only intensifies the sense of impunity over these human rights violations.”
Separately, the Washington Post claimed Thursday that Apple was under fire from top officials in Modi’s government, who had previously urged that Apple lessen the political implications of the warnings behind closed doors. According to the article, senior authorities summoned Apple personnel and demanded alternate answers, including flying in an Apple security specialist to meet with ministry chiefs.
The lobbying effort by Indian authorities to minimize the effect of the warnings upset Apple executives in California, but it had minimal success, according to the Washington Post. While Apple India executives first aided in casting doubt on the warnings, delivering a statement that included the possibility that some messages were false alarms, the firm provided no follow-up statement appeasing authorities after the expert’s visit.
The report goes on to say:
According to digital rights organizations, industry professionals, and Indian journalists, the latest incident demonstrated the risks that government critics face in India, as well as the extent to which the Modi administration would go to dispel accusations that it has been involved in hacking against its perceived adversaries.
Many of the more than 20 individuals who got Apple’s warnings at the end of October have openly criticized Modi or his longstanding buddy, Indian energy and infrastructure mogul Gautam Adani. They included a fiery West Bengal politician, a Communist leader from southern India, and a representative for the country’s major opposition party located in New Delhi.
Maintaining Apple’s commitment to user security took precedence over threats to its expanding India business. According to JP Morgan analysts, Apple, which launched two official shops in India this year, wants to shift 25% of iPhone manufacturing to India by 2025. The battle, however, demonstrated Modi’s determination to tighten the screws on Big Tech.
