The NSO group is an Israeli firm that specializes in the field of cybersurveillance. While this may initially make you feel a little concerned, the fact of the matter is that cyber security is a pretty popular field, and the reason for its popularity has to do with the fact that there are a lot of unseemly organizations in the world that try to function under the cover of internet security, and the main purpose of these cybersurveillance firms is to get information on these malicious actors.
However, it seems like Facebook is suing NSO group, claiming that the surveillance firm has used WhatsApp to spread a form of spyware that is being used to spy on well over a thousand devices that were spread across 20 countries ranging from Mexico all the way to a few countries in the gulf. While Facebook has been mum about the client that hired the firm to spy on these people, it did reveal that the people that were targeted include over a hundred journalists along with well known female world leaders. Some of the people that were also spied on include human rights activists as well as political dissidents, and all of this makes it definitely plausible if not likely that the Israeli government was using the firm for such purposes since that is one of the only entities that would benefit from spying on such people.
However, the firm has categorically denied this accusation, stating that their services are meant to protect people from pedophile organizations, terrorist cells as well as a wide variety of other dangerous and unsavory people that use encryption meant for regular consumer protection for the purposes of hiding their illegal, immoral and highly dangerous activities. It will interesting to see how this lawsuit plays out and how it will affect Facebook’s relationship with such surveillance firms.
Photo: Jaap Arriens | NurPhoto | Getty Images
Read next: Facebook tests a LinkedIn-like feature to help you find who viewed your profile (this will work only in Work Groups)
However, it seems like Facebook is suing NSO group, claiming that the surveillance firm has used WhatsApp to spread a form of spyware that is being used to spy on well over a thousand devices that were spread across 20 countries ranging from Mexico all the way to a few countries in the gulf. While Facebook has been mum about the client that hired the firm to spy on these people, it did reveal that the people that were targeted include over a hundred journalists along with well known female world leaders. Some of the people that were also spied on include human rights activists as well as political dissidents, and all of this makes it definitely plausible if not likely that the Israeli government was using the firm for such purposes since that is one of the only entities that would benefit from spying on such people.
However, the firm has categorically denied this accusation, stating that their services are meant to protect people from pedophile organizations, terrorist cells as well as a wide variety of other dangerous and unsavory people that use encryption meant for regular consumer protection for the purposes of hiding their illegal, immoral and highly dangerous activities. It will interesting to see how this lawsuit plays out and how it will affect Facebook’s relationship with such surveillance firms.
Photo: Jaap Arriens | NurPhoto | Getty Images
Read next: Facebook tests a LinkedIn-like feature to help you find who viewed your profile (this will work only in Work Groups)
