Apple fixes FaceTime eavesdropping bug

Tech giant Apple has said that a bug which allowed for eavesdropping on the firm’s FaceTime software has been fixed.

The privacy bug, which allowed iPhone and Mac owners to eavesdrop in on recipients if they did not answer their call, was discovered by US teenager Grant Thompson.

Apple said it would compensate the Thompson family and make an additional gift towards 14-year-old's education.

"Today's software update fixes the security bug in Group FaceTime," Apple said in a statement. "We again apologise to our customers and we thank them for their patience."

Earlier this week a pair of US Democrats asked Apple boss Tim Cook to respond to concerns about the bug, saying they were “deeply troubled” over how long it took Apple to address the security flaw.

The news comes as fellow Silicon Valley giant Google issued a warning about a security flaw of its own, with three vulnerabilities in its Android that could affect millions of smartphones.