The exploit's sophistication and the feature's obscurity suggest the attackers had advanced technical capabilities

exploiting a vulnerability in an undocumented hardware feature that few if anyone outside of Apple and chip suppliers such as ARM Holdings knew of.

according to Russian officials also infected the iPhones of thousands of people working inside diplomatic missions and embassies in Russia

the devices were infected with full-featured spyware that, among other things, transmitted microphone recordings, photos, geolocation, and other sensitive data to attacker-controlled servers

Sounds like government espionage

puts tinfoil hat on