Israeli company NSO Group has denied all allegations of wrongdoing related to Pegasus (File)
New Delhi:
Apple, Inc. on Tuesday sued Israeli firm NSO Group, the developer of Pegasus spyware that is used by governments around the world, including India, to spy on private messages and correspondence. tens of thousands of journalists, activists and politicians.
The case comes after India’s Supreme Court ordered a full investigation into allegations the government used Pegasus to illegally target its citizens.
The US-based consumer electronics giant has filed a lawsuit in a California federal court, seeking to block NSO Group from targeting the estimated 1.65 billion iPhones in use worldwide.
As far as India is concerned, as of January this year, Apple has shipped nearly 3.2 million iPhones in 2020 — from 1.7 million in 2018 — and research showing that Pegasus targets Apple devices better than others (e.g. Android) is worrying news for iPhone owners.
The iPhone maker said it was looking for “permanent ban to ban NSO Group from using any Apple software, services, or devices”, and describes the Israeli company as “notorious hackers – unscrupulous mercenaries of the 21st century who have created out extremely sophisticated network monitoring machinery”.
The Pegasus scandal erupted earlier this year (before the monsoon session of Parliament) after an international media consortium, including The Wire in India, leaked the phone numbers of opposition leaders and journalists critical of the BJP were found on database of potential attack targets.
That the list includes Congressman Rahul Gandhi, poll strategist Prashant Kishor, and a current Supreme Court judge, as well as current and former heads of national security agencies, among others.
The charges have sparked fierce protests by the opposition and civil society activists, with uproar and chaos in Congress, and legal complaints filed calling for an investigation. full statement.
Opposition leaders protest against the Pegasus scandal outside and inside Congress (File)
The government opposes calls for an investigation, affirmation first of all “no substance” And after that quote “national security” told the Supreme Court that they could not file a detailed affidavit on the matter.
Last month, the court said “a vague denial from the government is not enough” and order an investigation led by a retired judge, with a report to be sent in two months.
In the current context, the court, which has acknowledged potential limits to privacy, also stressed the importance of such intrusions being “subject to constitutional scrutiny”. The court also said it would not form an expert panel, saying it would “violate the principle of judicial settlement against bias”.
NSO Group, which has emphasized the fact that it only sells its spyware to national governments, has denied wrongdoing and said its software is intended for counterterrorism authorities and other crimes.
“Pedophiles and terrorists are free to operate in technology safe havens and we provide the government with the legal tools to combat it. NSO will continue to advocate for real,” it told AFP.
Apple’s suit isn’t the first by a Big Tech company; in 2019, Facebook sued NSO Group, accusing it of using WhatsApp to conduct cyber espionage against journalists, human rights activists and others.
In September, Apple released a software patch for a weakness that allowed NSO spyware to infect their devices even if the user did not click or open the malicious message.
With input from AFP
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