NSO Group spyware is back in the news after being detected on the cell phone of the President of Spain .
The Pegasus spyware returns to the fore after it was detected on the cell phone of Pedro Sánchez , the President of Spain , as well as his Defense Minister , Margarita Robles.
What is Pegasus?
It is a spy software developed by the Israeli company NSO Technologies .
This allows you to remotely monitor key elements such as cell phone cameras and microphones, regardless of whether they have Android or iOS ( iPhone ).
The problems with Pegasus
The NSO company is on the black list of entities in the United States, considering that it threatens the security of this country.
Pegasus would in theory be a good idea if governments use it to track down terrorists and criminals, but it has become a weapon of dark intent.
Authoritarian governments are some of Pegasus’ clients. Last year it became known that Pegasus had been used to spy on at least 180 journalists, 600 politicians, 85 human rights activists and 65 business leaders, explains AFP.
Amnesty International has denounced the use of Pegasus in various countries. Against Catalan figures in Spain, to follow activists in Bahrain or to monitor journalists in El Salvador. In 2018 it was estimated that Pegasus was already operating in 45 countries.
NSO ‘s financial straits would have caused the spyware to fall into the wrong hands, especially when some shareholders believed that selling it only to democratic countries “prevented the company from getting new customers.”
How do Pegasus infections happen?
It can be as simple as opening a malicious link on WhatsApp .
Spy strategists often rely on social engineering, trying to make the link appear to come from a trusted contact.
How can I detect Pegasus on my iPhone?
iPhone users can detect this malware using the free iMazing software , available for PC and Mac.
iMazing has a tool called “Detect Spyware” in the Action Panel. This is very similar to the mobile verification kit developed by Amnesty International .