Is the iPhone truly invincible? This time, the myth has been shattered. A domestic security team ...

The myth of Apple's "unbreakable system" is being gradually shattered, and this time, it's a Chinese team making the move. According to the WeChat public account "Pangu Stone Forensics," the "Pangu Stone" team, under Qi An Xin, has successfully bypassed the system privilege escalation restrictions in Apple's iOS 26.1, enabling forensic extraction of data from applications such as Telegram. This technology supports versions from iOS 17.0 to 26.1. This news is significant because it directly targets the core layer of Apple's security system—the system-level permissions and application data isolation mechanism. For a long time, iOS has been considered the most closed and secure mobile operating system, making it difficult for ordinary users to overstep privileges, and also presenting extremely high barriers to law enforcement and judicial evidence collection. This breakthrough signifies that China has joined the ranks of the world's leading countries in high-end mobile forensics. Even the most closed system, if complex enough, will inevitably have exploitable systemic vulnerabilities. Apple's security is not "unbreakable," but rather "extremely costly to crack." When sufficient manpower, time, and technical expertise are invested, even the seemingly impenetrable "fortress" will develop cracks. The Pangu Stone team's ability to achieve this stems from years of continuous research into the iOS kernel mechanism, sandbox model, and permission chains. This also represents a concentrated demonstration of the underlying capabilities of domestic security vendors. From another perspective, this is actually a signal that ordinary users need to think calmly. Many people choose iPhones because "data is more secure" and "privacy is more reliable," but the reality is that security is never absolute; it only exists within threat models. For individual users, iOS's high degree of isolation can indeed block a large number of low-cost attacks. However, in national, judicial, and enterprise-level security scenarios, as long as it is legal, compliant, and technically sound, Apple cannot become an "information island." Returning our focus to domestic mobile phones and operating systems, Huawei's HarmonyOS is an unavoidable topic. Unlike iOS and traditional Android, HarmonyOS has emphasized "distributed," "all-scenario," and "secure and controllable" from the outset. Especially under its new architecture, HarmonyOS attempts to find a balance between "availability" and "controllability" through stricter permission splitting, finer-grained call control, and the reconstruction of key system modules. It doesn't pursue the extreme closed nature of iOS, but rather emphasizes achieving security within the framework of auditability and manageability. This approach is actually more valuable in government, enterprise, and critical industries. So, is Android better, or Apple? If we consider "ease of attack by common malware," iOS still has an advantage; however, if we consider "controllability, auditability, and suitability for complex security scenarios," customized Android and HarmonyOS are more flexible. Android's problem has never been "insecurity," but rather its fragmented ecosystem and abuse of permissions, not inherent weaknesses in its underlying system. When Android is deeply customized and its permission model is strictly constrained, its security ceiling is not low. This is why, in forensics, security, and law enforcement, what's truly valued is not "what system you're using," but "whether this system can be understood, analyzed, and verified." Apple's closed nature has long constrained security research and compliance forensics to the manufacturer itself; while the controllability of domestic systems gives local security teams more room to maneuver. Pangu Security's breakthrough on iOS demonstrates that Chinese security technology is no longer reliant on system vendors for subsidies, but rather possesses the capability to understand and address the most complex mobile systems. Of course, this doesn't mean ordinary users should panic. On the contrary, a truly mature security system protects users' daily privacy while supporting necessary security forensics within legal and compliant frameworks. Apple, Android, and HarmonyOS follow three different paths; none is absolutely correct, nor is any inherently flawed. However, as domestic security technologies continue to advance, the stereotype of "Apple = absolute security, domestic equals inferior" is being overturned by reality. The ultimate answer to mobile security may not lie in which operating system you use, but in whether that system possesses sufficiently strong technical capabilities, transparent security mechanisms, and rules and boundaries that can be trusted by society. This time, the Pangu Security team has delivered more than just a technological breakthrough; it's a signal: China now has the confidence to directly confront Apple in the fields of mobile securit...