Maker of Pegasus Spyware Ordered to Pay $167M for WhatsApp Attack
NSO Group, the Israeli firm that developed the Pegasus spyware, has been told to fork out $167m (£125m) after it was found to have hacked 1,400 users of the messaging app in 2019. The decision was reached following a six-year legal battle with the parent company of WhatsApp, Meta, and is the first time a spyware develo
NSO Group, the Israeli firm that developed the Pegasus spyware, has been told to fork out $167m (£125m) after it was found to have hacked 1,400 users of the messaging app in 2019. The decision was reached following a six-year legal battle with the parent company of WhatsApp, Meta, and is the first time a spyware developer has been made to answer for exploiting vulnerabilities in smartphone platforms.
Pegasus is a spying tool that can be installed on the target’s mobile phone without their knowledge to gain access to their data, microphones, and cameras. While NSO claims that the software is intended for use against dangerous criminals and terrorists by government agencies, it has come under criticism for its role in allegedly helping authoritarian governments spy on journalists, activists, and politicians.
Meta welcomed the court decision as a ‘first win against the development and use of illegal spyware’ and said that the verdict would act as a deterrent to the spyware industry. NSO, in turn, said it would “study the details of the verdict and seek legal redress, including additional proceedings and an appeal.”
The Pegasus issue came to the fore in 2021 when a list of 50,000 phone numbers that were allegedly to be spied on using the spyware was leaked to the media. The names identified were politicians, business tycoons, journalists, Arab royalties, and even presidents such as the French President Emmanuel Macron. It is also believed that the spyware has targeted devices belonging to UK government establishments such as Downing Street and the Foreign Office, as reported by the Canadian research group, The Citizen Lab.
Apart from the $167 million payment to WhatsApp, NSO has also been required to pay Meta an additional $444,000 in damages. Meta said that the jury’s verdict is a clear signal against unlawful operations against American businesses, while NSO insisted that its tools are crucial in combating crime and terrorism.
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