Apple responds to WikiLeaks' claims of the CIA having hacked iPhones and Macs

Apple has responded to WikiLeaks's newest Vault 7 disclosures saying "the alleged iPhone vulnerability affected iPhone 3G only and was fixed in 2009 when iPhone 3GS was released".

"We have preliminarily assessed the Wikileaks disclosures from this morning. Additionally, our preliminary assessment shows the alleged Mac vulnerabilities were previously fixed in all Macs launched after 2013," Apple told Mashable.

Titled "Dark Matter", WikiLeaks' recently published Vault 7 files allegedly detail the CIA's efforts to hack iPhones and MacBooks. According to WikiLeaks, the various CIA projects targeting Apple products allegedly reveal that the spy agency had been compromising iPhones since 2008.

Apple's statement refers to two specific CIA projects, the "NightSkies" and the "Sonic Screwdriver". According to WikiLeaks, "NightSkies" allegedly involves enabling CIA agents to install malware on "factory fresh" iPhones, which can then remotely download call logs, contact lists, SMS data and more.

Apple also said the vulnerability relating to the CIA's alleged "Sonic Screwdriver" program, which involves infecting MacBooks with malware using a USB device, was "previously fixed in all Macs launched after 2013".

Apple also confirmed that it has "not negotiated with WikiLeaks for any information", alluding to previous reports of the whistleblowing platform having given tech giants a list of demands in exchange for providing them access to WikiLeaks' files on CIA hacking tools and techniques.

Apple said: "We have not negotiated with Wikileaks for any information. We have given them instructions to submit any information they wish through our normal process under our standard terms. Thus far, we have not received any information from them that isn't in the public domain. We are tireless defenders of our users' security and privacy, but we do not condone theft or coordinate with those that threaten to harm our users."

WikiLeaks' alleged CIA disclosures are yet to be confirmed as authentic either by the CIA, the US government or private security firms.