The iPhone Duo Pre-Order Scam
The iPhone Duo isn't available yet, and pre-orders aren't set to open until October 16 — but that doesn't mean you won't see ads promising to let you pre-order the foldable. These ads are a scam, and you should avoid them at all costs.
Spotted by Malwarebytes, this scam promises buyers that they can save $500 by pre-ordering an iPhone Duo. I can see the appeal of that when the Duo starts at $2,000, but that's a big red flag. If something seems too good to be true, it probably is, but logic tends to go out the window when hundreds of dollars are on the line.
Understanding the DarkSword Exploit
This isn't just your ordinary run-of-the-mill scam, though. Malwarebytes reports that the bogus pre-order page is actually using a leaked DarkSword exploit chain to try and crack into vulnerable iPhones. A successful version of this exploit attempts to steal any saved credentials, notes and crypto wallet data. This exploit targets iPhones running iOS 18.4 to iOS 18.6.2, but apparently the offending code shouldn't affect iPads or Macs.
The scary part? The exploit starts when you open the webpage. You don't need to download or click anything, nor do you have to fill out the fake pre-order form for things to start going south.
The page certainly looks legitimate. It has Apple's logos, font, copyright information and overall language style. Unlike a lot of scams there aren't any obvious typos or grammatical mistakes . However all the links to things like the privacy policy and terms & conditions don't actually go anywhere.
The fake pre-order form does feature some red flags, such as the mention of a "Natural titanium" color, despite the fact the iPhone Duo is only available in Start White and Night Sky (black). It also gets the dimensions wrong, listing size options of 6.3- and 6.9-inches, which are the screen sizes on iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max. The Duo only comes in one size, with a 7.6-inch foldable screen and 5.4-inch cover display.
But by that point it's already too late and the DarkSword exploit has already begun. However, this form does hand over a bunch of your personal data directly to the scammers, letting them use it as they please. That includes selling it for profit, using it to try and scam you even further and all those other risks that come from exposure of your personal data.
Update Your iOS
The first thing you can do to ensure this scam doesn't affect you, is to update your iPhone to the latest version of iOS. Since it only affects certain versions of iOS 18, updating to the newly-released iOS 27 will ensure that your iPhone is protected from DarkSword. It also means you have access to the best new iOS 27 features and updates, some of which are incredibly useful.
Apple has patched the exploit already, but it can't forcibly send fixes to your phone if you ignore the update notices iOS sends you. It's not pestering you for the sake of being annoying, those patches are important.
Be Wary of Suspicious Links
The second is to always be wary about the kind of links you click — especially if you're not keeping your device software up to date. If an ad is offering something a little too unbelievable, steer clear. Odds are it's some kind of honeypot designed to lure you in for other nefarious purposes.
Use Legitimate Pre-Order Channels
Finally, be sure to only pre-order iPhones from legitimate channels. That means the Apple Store, major retailers like Walmart or Best Buy, as well as the best phone carriers. Many of those third parties will also have different deals, but for something as new and sought after as the iPhone Duo they're likely to come in the form of enhanced trade-ins or discounted data plans — not money off the phone itself.
As for Apple, they almost never offer discounts on their devices, certainly not at the start of their life cycle. So any official looking sites offering major discounts is guaranteed to be some sort of scam. And just to reiterate, pre-orders for the Duo open on October 16, and won't be available anywhere until that day.
If you have already accidentally clicked a potentially dangerous link, don't worry, Malwarebytes recommends updating your phone and restarting it. Apparently the exploit doesn't continue stealing data after a reboot, though there's no telling what they may have stolen before that. If that has happened be sure to create a new crypto wallet with a different recovery phrase, and transfer your money over.
Likewise, you should change any passwords that may have been stolen. iOS 27 does have a feature that can do this for you in the event of future data breaches, but for now you'll need to do it all manually.
