The NSO Group, known for its infamous Pegasus spyware, came under intense public scrutiny in 2021 after media reports revealed that several governments around the world misused the spyware to target journalists, activists, and political opponents. The Supreme Court’s decision gives Meta-owned WhatsApp the green light to sue the NSO Group in the United States. The company joins Apple, who, in 2021, filed a suit against the NSO Group for exploiting a vulnerability to install the spyware on iPhones.
WhatsApp’s Lawsuit Against NSO Group
WhatsApp has tried to take the NSO Group to court since 2019. The tech giant claims the NSO group exploited a bug in WhatsApp to install Pegasus and conduct mass surveillance. The NSO Group previously told lower courts it had immunity from the lawsuit as it was acting as an agent of foreign governments. In 2020, a judge refused to award NSO Group immunity. The following year, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the judge’s ruling. Consequently, the NSO Group appealed the Circuit Court’s decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. However, the country’s highest judicial institution has dismissed the appeal, allowing Meta to proceed with its lawsuit. “NSO’s spyware has enabled cyberattacks targeting human rights activists, journalists and government officials,” Meta said. “We firmly believe that their operations violate U.S. law and they must be held to account for their unlawful operations.”
Pegasus Spyware was Used to Track 1,400 Users
WhatsApp, in its court papers, claimed that NSO Group’s clients used Pegasus to track up to 1,400 users. This allowed NSO’s clients to use the victims’ devices to snoop on them. Since the July 2021 revelations, several additional reports of the widespread misuse of Pegasus have come to light. This includes the Bahrain government using Pegasus to gather information on activists. Spanish and Polish authorities also used Pegasus to target critics and minority leaders. In February 2022, the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) called for a bloc-wide ban on the use of Pegasus. The U.S. government blacklisted the NSO Group in November 2021, along with Candiru, for providing spyware that governments used to target journalists, activists, and other human rights advocates. Interested in learning more about spyware and how to protect yourself from it? Our detailed guide to spyware contains all the information you need.
