Apple manufacturing partner Tata Electronics on Monday admitted that it was recently hit with a cyberattack that resulted in confidential Apple documents being leaked on the dark web. Tata both produces components and assembles products like the iPhone 17 Pro for Apple.
Included among the more than 630GB of confidential data was stolen from Tata, a large amount of information related to Apple products, although at the time, it was unknown exactly what information had been harvested by the bad actors.
Now, AppleInsider reports it has now conducted a preliminary analysis of the files taken from Tata, and has published its findings.
The stolen data included iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max logic board schematics, data sheets for numerous Apple-designed chips, including the A20 Pro. Documentation containing all Apple part numbers for the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro’s components is also included.
The publication says it can confirm the schematics and data sheets all have the hallmarks of authentic Apple design documentation. Many of the documents were created with Siemens NX.
The schematics reveal the exact board layouts for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, offering detailed info about the individual chips, including the companies that supply them. The layers of the logic boards are all well-detailed and are shown in multiple angles.
A20 Pro data sheets provide information about the improvements of the chip over the current A19 Pro chip. In addition to the usual performance enhancements, the docs indicate the new chip will offer improved Image Signal Processor abilities and enhanced display security.
Documents connected to Apple’s C2 modem, codenamed Ganymede, indicate the hardware will be used in the iPhone 18 Pro.
While a variety of files related to the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, known as V63 and V43, respectively, were found in the bad guys’ bounty, few contained any new information.
The purloined Tata documents appear to be mostly made up of files connected to hardware testing, quality control, assembly lines, and more. While the documents include imagery and drop test videos, they are all connected to the base model iPhone 15 or the current iPhone 17 Pro lineups.
It should be noted that much of the information harvest appears to have any usefulness to anyone other than Tata. Plus, the company looks to have taken strict measures to ensure that information about the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max is not exposed, with files listing parts and configurations having certain information, like color options, being redacted due to NDAs.
As pointed out by AppleInsider, while much of the information doesn’t appear to be of significant concern to either Tata or Apple, the group behind the cyberattack may have removed information about the iPhone 18 Pro from the harvest before releasing these files, allowing them to prove their prowess, while still retaining information that would provide leverage when it comes to a ransom payment.
The hackers behind the attack, World Leaks, are believed to have sent a ransom demand to Tata, but the group declined to comment.