Tel Aviv, Israel – November 18, 2024- NSO exploited WhatsApp post-lawsuit to deploy Pegasus spyware via zero-click exploits, infecting thousands globally. Shocking court details emerge on illegal methods.
In a shocking revelation, court documents have exposed how NSO Group, an Israeli spyware firm, continued exploiting WhatsApp to deploy its infamous Pegasus spyware even after being sued by Meta in 2019.
The revelations highlight the brazen methods employed by NSO, including the development of new zero-click exploits to breach WhatsApp’s defenses and compromise devices globally.
The attack vector, codenamed Erised,” was used to install Pegasus spyware without user interaction, allowing NSO to access and control targeted devices. According to the unsealed documents, NSO developed malicious software by reverse-engineering WhatsApp’s code, flagrantly violating the platform’s terms of service.
This is an alarming example of how sophisticated actors can bypass even the most robust cybersecurity measures.
Between 2018 and 2020, NSO’s Pegasus spyware infected hundreds to tens of thousands of devices using WhatsApp servers as conduits. The spyware, controlled entirely by NSO rather than its clients, provided near-total access to targets’ data.
According to WhatsApp scam statistics, over 55 million WhatsApp users globally have been victims of scams and vulnerabilities in recent years, underscoring the scale of risk.
Customers simply entered the target’s number, and Pegasus did the rest.
Meta initially sued NSO for exploiting a zero-day vulnerability in WhatsApp’s voice call feature. However, even as legal proceedings began, NSO advanced its spyware arsenal, exposing more victims to data breaches.
This latest disclosure raises critical questions about accountability in the spyware industry, with Pegasus being touted as a tool for combating terrorism but instead being used for widespread surveillance.
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