While the iPhone has a reputation for being more secure than Android, the popularity of Apple's smartphones has made them a bigger target for hackers, especially when it comes to more sophisticated spyware attacks

Earlier this year, the iPhone maker issued a spyware warning to customers in 92 countries around the world Now, Apple has issued a similar warning again, but this time to iPhone users in even more countries

Here is everything you need to know about this new spyware warning and how to keep your iPhone safe from hackers

As reported by TechCrunch, Apple sent a new warning about mercenary spyware to iPhone users in 98 countries This is because many journalists in India have been targeted in the past by the notorious NSO group and its Pegasus spyware

According to the warning, "Apple has detected that you are the target of a mercenary spyware attack It further explains that the reason certain users are being targeted is due to "who you are and what you do"

Unlike malware and phishing attacks, spyware is expensive for hackers to deploy

It is worth noting that in the past, Apple has called these incidents "state-sponsored" attacks, whereas this time it is calling them "mercenary spyware attacks" The language may have changed, but the threat remains the same

The first and most important thing you can do to best protect your iPhone from spyware is to keep your smartphone updated and running the latest software Apple has security patches in both major and minor releases of iOS are often included to help keep you, your device, and the data stored on it safe

You should also consider enabling Apple's lockdown mode on your iPhone if you are or suspect you are a high-value target However, doing so will limit certain features (such as link previews in messages and browser just-in-time [JIT] JavaScript compilation) to minimize vulnerabilities that could be exploited by spyware However, for those at serious risk, this may be worthwhile, as the alternative is far worse

In addition to enabling lockdown mode, you should also consider signing up for Google's Advanced Protection program, which is designed to protect you from phishing scams and harmful downloads It also comes with some restrictions and additional requirements that change the way you use your Google account

For most people, however, such warnings are more of a wake-up call than a serious threat just because the iPhone is known to be very secure does not mean you should take unnecessary risks online iPhone and Mac Another way to stay safe is to install the best Mac antivirus software Not all Mac antivirus software can scan for iPhone malware, but Intego Mac Internet Security X9 and Intego Mac Premium Bundle X9 can

Don't expect this threat to go away anytime soon, as spyware is highly profitable and can extract all kinds of sensitive data from targeted devices