The true threat of Israeli firm NSO's spyware is that as tech tools become more effective, they can become part of the daily grind of politics
An Israeli company called NSO Group has created a spyware tool called Pegasus that gives its users an extraordinary ability to surveil and steal secrets from anyone who carries a smartphone. Investigative reports and advertising materials from NSO reveal that Pegasus can listen to phone calls and voicemails, track the phone owner’s movement and current location, steal passwords, and collect e-mails, videos and browsing history.
NSO head Shalev Hulio has said he’s upset that his firm’s clients would do such a thing, though he denies the charge that NSO is connected to a list of 50,000 potential targets listed in the Forbidden Stories/Amnesty report. NSO acknowledges that it has 60 government customers in 40 countries. In India, a deadly surge of Covid-19 has already damaged Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s once-sturdy political standing, and charges that India’s government has used Pegasus to spy on opposition leaders, business leaders, reporters and foreign diplomats will only make matters worse. As India recovers economically and jobs are created, Modi will succeed in limiting the political damage, but mistrust among the government, opposition and local leaders has rarely been higher.
But the speed at which tech companies become independent actors in international politics should have our attention. The only interests these companies have are their own and those of their shareholders.
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