Can someone hack my phone just by calling or texting me?
Short answer
For ordinary users this is very rare. Attacks that need no click do exist, but they are expensive and usually aimed at specific high-risk people. The realistic danger from calls and texts is being persuaded to tap a link, install an app or share a code.
The details
Keeping the phone updated closes the flaws such attacks rely on. If you are at elevated risk, for example as a journalist, activist or executive, Apple’s Lockdown Mode and similar hardened settings reduce the attack surface further.
Terms explained
- Zero-day
- A zero-day is a vulnerability that is exploited or known to attackers before the vendor has a fix available.
Sources
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