Facebook Sues Israel's NSO Group Over Alleged WhatsApp Hack (reuters.com) 11
Facebook on Tuesday sued Israeli cyber surveillance firm NSO Group, alleging it hacked users of its messaging platform WhatsApp earlier this year. From a report: The hacking spree targeted journalists, diplomats, human rights activists, political dissidents, senior government officials and others, Facebook said in its lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco. Facebook-owned WhatsApp, which is also a plaintiff in the lawsuit, said in a statement that it believed the attack "targeted at least 100 members of civil society, which is an unmistakable pattern of abuse." Facebook is seeking to have NSO barred from accessing or attempting to access WhatsApp and Facebook's services and is seeking unspecified damages. NSO's alleged use of a flaw in WhatsApp to hijack phones caused international consternation when it was made public in May of this year. NSO at the time said in a statement that it would investigate any "credible allegations of misuse" of its technology. WhatsApp said the attack exploited its video calling system in order to send malware to the mobile devices of a number of users. Further reading: Will Cathcart, head of WhatsApp, elaborates why WhatsApp is pushing back on NSO Group hacking.
Re: What dissenters? (Score:2)
All software has bugs. It's legal to have bugs. It's not legal for state sponsored actors to exploit the, targeting journalists and others who are, or ought to be, immune from hostile state action.
That's how it is in a real democratic county. Good thing we all know that Israel isn't even close to being one of those.
Tamir Pardo VERSUS Yossi Cohen (Score:2)
Ain't no blood feud like an internecine blood feud.
And Tamir Pardo & Yossi Cohen really REALLY hate each other.
Re: (Score:1)
Please, cite the relevant law — as well as provide actual evidence, that it was violated.
All there is currently is an anonymous "say so". Indeed, for all we know, the Guardian's journalist could've invented this "lawyer" from thin air...
Re: (Score:1)
If you had any evidence, you would've cited it by now... The only reasonable conclusion is, you don't have any. Case closed.
Watch out Mark! (Score:1)
Counterclaim (Score:4, Funny)
NSO group should counterclaim for contributory negligence by Facebook; had Facebook not been negligent in the design of their "WhatsApp" (whatever the hell that is) that NSO would not have been able to do what it did -- that in fact FaceBook was a public nuisance due to their reckless neglect of common security practices. Therefore Facebook is responsible for its misfortune, which it was exclusively in the position to prevent, but failed to do so. Not only should the lawsuit be dismissed, but Facebook should be required to pay NSO's legal fees of mounting a defense on a Solicitor and Client basis, and perhaps a penalty for bringing such a frivolous and vexatious lawsuit in the first place.
Re: Counterclaim (Score:2, Insightful)
Standard Israeli narrative. It's the other guy's fault for getting in the way of the bullet.