Batman is one of the most loved and recognizable superheroes out there. The Caped Crusader—an icon of vigilante justice, a master martial artist, a brilliant detective, a genius, and of course a billionaire—has a lot going for him. While he may not be as strong as Superman or as singularly brilliant as Lex Luthor, he is the quintessential jack of all trades. I bet this is not what you expected to read on a website that only posts about Apple—the company, not the fruit (although we do use the fruit as a joke at times). But, kindly allow me to cook!
Among the many things Batman does to fight crime in Gotham is sleuthing and, at times, invading people’s privacy at near-criminal levels. His war on crime isn’t just fought in dark alleys—it’s fought through data. Whether it’s tracking suspects, hacking systems, or tapping into private networks, he routinely crosses lines that, in our world, would raise serious questions about privacy. Yes, his targets are usually criminals, but his methods? They are not exactly regulation-friendly.
A big part of what enables this is his technology. Funded by Bruce Wayne’s fortune, his tools are far beyond anything available to the public. Advanced hacking systems, near-omniscient surveillance tech, and a willingness to outsource when needed make him incredibly effective and from a data privacy perspective, slightly terrifying.
There’s also the fact that he’s fictional and has a lot of plot armour but we are suspending our disbeliefs here. He basically functions like a reverse, one-man (two-man, if we include Alfred) modern dystopian government—the only difference being that he wants to improve society and not control it.
So, in an alternate dimension where Batman coexists with us, do you think he could hack into our Apple devices? This is not a pressing concern or anything for me, just a really cool what-if scenario.
Apple Inc. has built its modern identity around privacy. Especially since the iPhone 5s era and its “Privacy. That’s iPhone.” positioning, the company has emphasised strong encryption and user data protection. It’s one of the few tech companies that treats privacy as a default setting rather than an add-on. Even recently in India, when the government pushed smartphone manufacturers to pre-install the Sanchar Saathi app in their devices, Apple refused to comply.
Apple Inc. has made privacy a central part of its sales pitch, and it also commits to it in practice—investing significant resources to keep users’ data secure. Ideally, that would mean we’re fully protected from both vigilantes and cybercriminals lurking out there. However, the reality is a bit more complicated and bleak.
Recently, it was discovered that a cyber threat managed to get past the Apple gates and affect many users. DarkSword— a “zero-click” iOS exploit chain and infostealer toolkit allowed attackers to fully compromise iPhones running older versions of iOS 18. It enabled attackers to steal sensitive data—including messages, photos, and cryptocurrency credentials—simply by having a user visit a compromised website, without requiring them to click any links or download apps.
That would have certainly made things easier for Batman!
While the exploit mainly affected people using outdated iPhones or those who hadn’t updated their systems, Apple did respond quickly with security patches, but the fact remains: vulnerabilities do exist and devices are indeed capable of being compromised.
Sure, given Apple’s endeavours, the iPhone isn’t an easy target. But against someone with Batman’s resources, skillset, and moral flexibility, it’s not impenetrable either. After all, we do have smart billionaires—and they’re not even the crime-fighting kind, more like the crime-propagating kind.
Granted, the only things Batman or the others are going to find in my iPhone storage are goofy cat photos, a bazillion screenshots of memes, embarrassing attempts at poetry in my notes app, and a banger playlist.
