NSO Group Banned from Targeting WhatsApp Users Again

A U.S. federal court has permanently barred NSO Group, the Israeli tech company behind the Pegasus spyware, from targeting WhatsApp users.

The ruling follows a 2019 lawsuit by Meta, which accused NSO of exploiting WhatsApp’s encrypted messaging system to spy on journalists, lawyers, and human rights defenders. Evidence showed that NSO manipulated and bypassed WhatsApp’s security features to secretly install its spyware, continually updating it to avoid detection.

Judge Phyllis Hamilton stated that NSO’s actions severely undermined users’ trust in WhatsApp and the security of their messages. While the court ordered NSO to stop its activities, it reduced the damages from $168 million to $4 million. Claims against Facebook and Instagram were dismissed due to insufficient evidence of similar attacks.

WhatsApp CEO Will Cathcart welcomed the decision, calling it an important precedent that underscores the serious consequences of espionage activities and the need to halt them.

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