Meta Platforms Inc.’s WhatsApp messenger service said it disrupted a hacking campaign linked to Israeli spyware firm Paragon.
WhatsApp detected efforts to hack the phones of approximately 90 people, including journalists and members of civil society, in a wave of attacks that occurred late last year, a company spokesperson told Bloomberg News Friday.
WhatsApp said that hackers invited their targets to a WhatsApp group, then sent them a malicious PDF file that would breach their device. It’s not clear where those who were targeted with the spyware were located, or whether the attempts at compromising their phones were successful. WhatsApp said it has notified all those who were affected.
“This is the latest example of why spyware companies must be held accountable for their unlawful actions,” the spokesperson said. “WhatsApp will continue to protect peoples’ ability to communicate privately.”
Spyware, which allows users to remotely access mobile phones and monitor encrypted messages without the victim’s knowledge, is a controversial tool that has often been by some governments to target human rights workers, journalists and critics. Israel’s NSO Group has been sanctioned by the US since 2021 due to its Pegasus hacking tool.
Paragon’s technology is designed to gain remote access to a mobile phone, allowing law enforcement and intelligence agencies to covertly monitor encrypted messages sent using apps such as WhatsApp and Signal. The company in December was acquired by the US private equity firm AE Industrial Partners in a deal worth up to $900 million.
Representatives for Paragon and AE Industrial Partners didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment on WhatsApp’s allegations.
Paragon has sought to distinguish itself from other spyware companies by insisting that it only sells its technology to governments in democratic countries for the purposes of targeting serious criminals.
“For some time Paragon has had the reputation of a ‘better’ spyware company not implicated in obvious abuses, but WhatsApp’s recent revelations suggest otherwise,” said Natalia Krapiva, senior tech-legal counsel at digital rights group Access Now. “This is not just a question of some bad apples. These types of abuses are a feature of the commercial spyware industry.”
WhatsApp previously filed a lawsuit against NSO Group, accusing it of targeting more than 1,400 WhatsApp users. In December, a US judge in the Northern District of California ruled in favor of the messaging service, finding that NSO was liable for hacking and breach of contract.
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