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NSO Group

NSO Group Used 3 Zero-Click iPhone Exploits Against Human Rights Defenders

Israeli spyware maker NSO Group deployed at least three novel “zero-click” exploits against iPhones in 2022 to infiltrate defenses erected by Apple and deploy Pegasus, according to the latest findings from Citizen Lab. “NSO Group customers widely deployed at least three iOS 15 and iOS 16 zero-click exploit chains against civil society targets around the […]

E.U. Officials Reportedly Targeted with Israeli Pegasus Spyware

Senior officials in the European Union were allegedly targeted with NSO Group’s infamous Pegasus surveillance tool, according to a new report from Reuters. At least five individuals, including European Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders, are said to have been singled out in total, the news agency said, citing documents and two unnamed E.U. officials. However, it’s […]

EU Data Protection Watchdog Calls for Ban on Pegasus-like Commercial Spyware

The European Union’s data protection authority on Tuesday called for a ban on the development and the use of Pegasus-like commercial spyware in the region, calling out the technology’s “unprecedented level of intrusiveness” that could endanger users’ right to privacy. “Pegasus constitutes a paradigm shift in terms of access to private communications and devices, which […]

Another Israeli Firm, QuaDream, Caught Weaponizing iPhone Bug for Spyware

A now-patched security vulnerability in Apple iOS that was previously found to be exploited by Israeli company NSO Group was also separately weaponized by a different surveillance vendor named QuaDream to hack into the company’s devices. The development was reported by Reuters, citing unnamed sources, noting that “the two rival businesses gained the same ability […]

Pegasus Spyware Reportedly Hacked iPhones of U.S. State Department and Diplomats

Apple reportedly notified several U.S. Embassy and State Department employees that their iPhones may have been targeted by an unknown assailant using state-sponsored spyware created by the controversial Israeli company NSO Group, according to multiple reports from Reuters and The Washington Post. At least 11 U.S. Embassy officials stationed in Uganda or focusing on issues […]

Israel Bans Sales of Hacking and Surveillance Tools to 65 Countries

Israel’s Ministry of Defense has dramatically restricted the number of countries to which cybersecurity firms in the country are allowed to sell offensive hacking and surveillance tools to, cutting off 65 nations from the export list. The revised list, details of which were first reported by the Israeli business newspaper Calcalist, now only includes 37 […]

Apple Sues Israel’s NSO Group for Spying on iPhone Users With Pegasus Spyware

Apple has sued NSO Group and its parent company Q Cyber Technologies in a U.S. federal court holding it accountable for illegally targeting users with its Pegasus surveillance tool, marking yet another setback for the Israeli spyware vendor. The Cupertino-based tech giant painted NSO Group as “notorious hackers — amoral 21st century mercenaries who have […]

US Sanctions Pegasus-maker NSO Group and 3 Others For Selling Spyware

The U.S. Commerce Department on Wednesday added four companies, including Israel-based spyware companies NSO Group and Candiru, to a list of entities engaging in “malicious cyber activities.” The agency said the two companies were added to the list based on evidence that “these entities developed and supplied spyware to foreign governments that used these tools […]

A former NSO employee is caught selling spyware on $50M

An NSO Group ex employee, one of the most powerful hacking companies in the world, has been arrested and charged for stealing company’s phone hack tools and trying to sell it for $50M on the dark web. The Israeli computer piracy firm NSO Group is primarily known for selling high-tech malware capable of remotely connecting […]