Mobile gaming has come a long way over the course of the last decade or so, but we all know that smartphones simply can’t match the visceral, tactile feel you get while playing with a dedicated controller. Luckily, Backbone makes some excellent mobile options — including last year’s Backbone Pro, which is on sale at Amazon, Best Buy, and Target right now for $139.99 ($30 off), its second-best price to date.

In many ways, Backbone’s latest mobile controller is merely an updated take on what came before. The handheld device consists of two oblong halves with an extendable strip of plastic in the middle, allowing you to use it with Android devices and iPhone 15, 16, and 17 series phones. It plugs into your phone’s USB-C port and, once connected, you can game with two full-sized ALPs thumbsticks, a responsive D-pad, and A, B, X, and Y buttons. It also features two programmable back buttons, a 3.5mm headphone jack, better ergonomics than your phone, and averages up to 40 hours of battery life on a single charge.

The hardware is only part of the equation, though. Backbone’s intent with the Pro is for it to function as a more universal gamepad, and as such, the company’s software pulls together games from Apple Arcade, Netflix, Google Play, and other services into a singular app, allowing you to discover and launch games with little fuss. What’s more, you can use it to stream Xbox or PlayStation games — either from your console or the cloud —and connect it to a wealth of other devices via Bluetooth, including your PC, Steam Deck, and Apple devices like the iPad and Mac. Sure, the beefy controller looks a little awkward when you’re using it without a phone, but it’s a small price to pay for its added versatility.

You glance at your phone and see it. A calendar alert warns you that your iPhone is infected. Or that you won a prize. Or that your account will be locked. Your first thought might be panic. Your second step should be to pause.

Many Apple users are reporting a wave of fake calendar invites that appear out of nowhere. These alerts are not malware. However, they are a scam tactic. And they can quickly clutter your calendar with junk events and suspicious links. Let’s break down what is happening and how to fix it.

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How fake calendar invites get onto your iPhone

Here is the surprising part. Most of the time, no app is installed. Nothing comes through the App Store. You do not download anything obvious.

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Instead, the problem often starts with a single tap. You might click a bad link in a message or on a website. That page can quietly prompt you to subscribe to a calendar. Once you tap approve, even by accident, the spam events begin to flow in.

Because it is a subscription, the alerts show up directly in your iOS notifications. Even if the related email lands in junk mail, the calendar event can still appear on your device. It feels invasive. But according to users discussing the issue on Reddit’s r/Apple forum, it usually does not mean your phone was hacked.

As one commenter put it, if scammers are using calendar events to reach you, they likely did not break into your device. They simply tricked you into subscribing. 

Why iPhone calendar spam alerts feel urgent and real

Scammers design these fake calendar invites to trigger panic fast. For example, one alert may claim your iPhone has a virus, while another promises a prize or warns that your account will be suspended. Instead of giving you time to think, the message pushes you to act immediately. As a result, many people tap before they pause.

However, that second click is where the real risk begins. In many cases, it redirects you to a phishing site that asks for passwords, credit card details or other personal information. Although the calendar alert itself is not malware, engaging with it can expose you to identity theft or financial fraud. In other words, the danger is not the notification. It is what happens next.

How to remove iPhone calendar spam invites

The good news is that removing the spam usually takes only a few steps.

Step 1: Check your subscribed calendars

• Go to Settings
• Scroll to the bottom and tap Apps
• Click Calendar
• Tap Calendar Accounts
• Click Subscribed Calendars
• Look for any subscription you do not recognize. Delete it.

That single action often stops the flood of alerts.

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Step 2: Remove the spam subscription inside the Calendar app

• Open the Calendar app.
• Tap the calendar icon at the bottom.
• Find the suspicious subscription and tap the “i” next to it. Confirm it is junk and unsubscribe.

After you unsubscribe, you may still need to manually delete leftover events.

Step 3: Offload and reinstall the Calendar app

If the app continues to behave strangely, you can offload it.

Important note before you do this: Offloading the app removes the app itself but keeps your calendar data. Your events stored in iCloud, Google or other accounts remain intact. However, if you delete the app instead of offloading it, that can remove locally stored data. If your calendars are synced with iCloud or another account, your events will come back after reinstalling. Still, it is smart to confirm your calendars are syncing before making changes.

• Go to Settings
• Click General
• Tap iPhone Storage
• Click Calendar
• Tap Offload App
• Restart your phone
• Then go back to Settings > General > iPhone Storage > Calendar and tap Reinstall App. You can also tap the Calendar icon on your Home Screen. If it shows a small cloud download symbol, tap it to reinstall.

Several users reported that this solved lingering issues.

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How to prevent calendar spam in the future

Now that your calendar is clean, the next step is prevention.

Here are smart habits that make a real difference:

• Keep iOS updated so security patches stay current
• Avoid tapping links in unexpected texts or pop-ups
• Use strong antivirus software to block malicious websites and phishing links before they load. Get my picks for the best 2026 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android & iOS devices at Cyberguy.com
• Never engage with alerts about prizes or infections
• Consider a data removal service to limit how much of your personal information is exposed online. Check out my top picks for data removal services and get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web by visiting Cyberguy.com
• Review and remove unknown calendar subscriptions regularly

Why Apple users are frustrated

Many users point out that even when a spam invite lands in junk mail, the event can still appear on the calendar. That disconnect feels like a flaw in the system. Some argue Apple should tighten how calendar subscriptions work. Still, personal awareness goes a long way. Scammers rely on quick reactions. Slow down, verify and stay skeptical of urgency.

Kurt’s key takeaways

Fake iPhone calendar spam invites are annoying. They are disruptive. And they can feel alarming. However, in most cases, they are the result of a sneaky subscription, not a hacked phone. A few careful taps can remove them. A few smarter habits can keep them from returning.

The next time your phone flashes an urgent warning, will you react instantly or take a breath and investigate first? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com.

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Why Arm + Linux now? In a blog post, Google only says that it “addresses the growing demand for a browsing experience that combines the benefits of the open-source Chromium project with the Google ecosystem of apps and features.” What we’re left wondering is whether Google’s talking about existing demand, or demand yet to come.

There’s certainly a growing demand for Linux. Some Verge editors have begun to ditch Windows with varying degrees of success. But those are our x86 desktops — there isn’t a lot of consumer-facing Linux on Arm chips, unless you count all the Linux-based Android phones out there. You can buy Linux on laptops from Dell, Lenovo, Framework, and such, but again, they use x86 chips. (And if you’re not a consumer, there’s already Chromium.)

But three of the companies that actually build Arm processors — Qualcomm, Nvidia, and Mediatek — may look to Linux as they try to compete with the Windows/Intel/AMD incumbents. Qualcomm told me in January that it sees “a lot of interest on other operating systems” beyond Windows for its PC-grade Arm chips. Nvidia could reveal its N1 and N1X processors for Arm laptops as soon as next week at its GTC 2026 developer conference.

While those Nvidia laptops might get announced with Windows, it wouldn’t be surprising if they targeted Linux too, once the basics like Chrome are sorted out. Google’s blog post specifically namedrops Nvidia’s DGX Spark as a target for Chrome — those $4,000+ beefy micro AI desktops, sold by a wide array of the company’s partners, also run Linux on Arm. Google says it’s putting Chrome into Nvidia’s package manager to make installation easier; everyone else will have to go to chrome.com/download when the browser arrives in Q2.