FBI Probes Use of Israeli Firm's Spyware In Personal and Government Hacks

nickwinlund77 shares a report from Reuters: The FBI is investigating the role of Israeli spyware vendor NSO Group Technologies in possible hacks on American residents and companies as well as suspected intelligence gathering on governments, according to four people familiar with the inquiry. The probe was underway by 2017, when Federal Bureau of Investigation officials were trying to learn whether NSO obtained from American hackers any of the code it needed to infect smartphones, said one person interviewed by the FBI then and again last year.

The FBI conducted more interviews with technology industry experts after Facebook filed a lawsuit in October accusing NSO itself of exploiting a flaw in Facebook's WhatsApp messaging service to hack 1,400 users, according to two people who spoke with agents or Justice Department officials. Part of the FBI probe has been aimed at understanding NSO's business operations and the technical assistance it offers customers, according to two sources familiar with the inquiry. Suppliers of hacking tools could be prosecuted under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) or the Wiretap Act, if they had enough knowledge of or involvement in improper use, said James Baker, general counsel at the FBI until January 2018. The CFAA criminalizes unauthorized access to a computer or computer network, and the Wiretap Act prohibits use of a tool to intercept calls, texts or emails. NSO is known in the cybersecurity world for its "Pegasus" software other tools that can be delivered in several ways. The software can capture everything on a phone, including the plain text of encrypted messages, and commandeer it to record audio."

NSA

[Arthur, KBE]

It's OK for them to hack Americans though?

Re:NSA

[XXongo]

tu quoque,

Re:

[v1]

you beat me to it!

FBI: "It's evil to spy on American citizens, and nobody should be allowed to do it ! (except us of course)"

I personally wonder if they're more bothered by the chance of being beat at their own game, or it's coming down to more of a "HEY, THAT'S MY JOB!" kind of hurt?

Re:

[nehumanuscrede]

" I personally wonder if they're more bothered by the chance of being beat at their own game, or it's coming down to more of a "HEY, THAT'S MY JOB!" kind of hurt? "

Or perhaps they just realized that they aren't immune to being spied upon either . . . . .

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Mindset

[Errol backfiring]

“I think a lot of these [phone] companies are just trying to make it harder for law enforcement to get data from these phones under the guise of consumer privacy.”

(emphasis mine).

Wow, statements like these are so creepy that it is dead obvious things only got worse since Snowden:

• First of all, this is someone from a private company. National security agencies may have permission to crack communications, private companies definitely do not.
• That also means the agencies don't give a lovemaking damn who they are illegally sharing sensitive data with or what criminals they support.
• Keeping communication channels safe is the prime reason of existence for most of these agencies (look them up, these objectives are public), yet they do the exact opposite.
• If the agencies share the opinions of the above quoted clown, they actually think communications should be totally unsafe, so anyone can do anything with other people's communication without being caught.

Re: Mindset

[Dopamina]

I think it really comes down to laziness. Most people like when they're jobs are easy, law enforcement included. Their job is much easier when they don't have to deal with pesky things like a right to privacy or encrypted data. Thing is, them being lazy and wanting tools to circumvent privacy make them a collective big smelly bag of dicks.

Re:

[Canberra1]

Memory chips can be desoldered, or a jig setup to connect with PCB testpoints that are unlabeled and now often buried under varnish or another component. By design most phones or OS may have encrypted memory, and mostly an unencrypted registry/parmlib. If you know the undocumented boot parms, you can then jag the keys as it were. Sometimes a wireless blutooth interface can edit settings that progressivly allow privilege escalation - a combo state to state attack. Android does not allow you to remove some

Re:

[XXongo]

The missing word in this is "some."

Some androids are more secure than iPhone. If you don't know which one, then no; some androids are very insecure.

Re:

[alvinrod]

“Some of the newer operating systems are harder to get data from than others,” Kiser told Vice. “I think a lot of these [phone] companies are just trying to make it harder for law enforcement to get data from these phones under the guise of consumer privacy.”

I didn't know that the DFW police were recruiting jack-booted thugs straight out of the Gestapo these days. The fucking balls on this guy to act like the data somehow belongs to the state and that citizens who value their privacy are some kind of criminals. I wonder how he'd feel if it were his privacy that was being violated to all hell and back.

Security Clearance needed to buy it

[Canberra1]

In Australia, I seem to recall a WET? clearance was needed to buy it, a pretty high hurdle, besides the pricetag itself. I also recall sales documents leaked for a like tool, and most state police forces aquired it, even though it is NOT necessary , as a warrant will do the same job. The conclusion is they feel warrants are not necessary, just like defence lawyers informing on their own clients. I don't see the relevance of who sold whom what - like a gun, no harm has been done unless the owner pulls the t

Re:

[AHuxley]

In Australia ... Signals Directorate "is" the network.
Re "jealousy" .. some states went shopping :) (not the US ones..)
Re "backdoors are discovered" Every product sold is the backdoor...

Israelis can not be trusted..

[John Trumpian]

Israelis have to strange assumption they are the chosen people of god, actually lots of Americans have this narrow vision too. Israelis think the world is made form them and all other people are less than themselves. This is a paradoxical, non goddish, thought. All is allowed to protect their strange world view and their lust for domination of regions. America supports this out of fear the middle east will become the center of the 3th world war. Not only the Israelis can not be trusted, others like the Sau

if there is a backdoor for the government

[FudRucker]

then eventually it will be leaked and/or some criminal type will find and use it for criminal activity, and since government is run by people and people are corruptible then why trust the government with the keys to a backdoor, maybe Apple is right in not handing the keys over and will only unlock cellphones on a case by case basis for the government,

Dear Government

[nehumanuscrede]

This is why Apple ( and everyone else should be ) is fighting against back dooring their products.

While it's a fantastic, albeit limited vision, idea coming from a Law Enforcement perspective, it isn't going to be limited to Law Enforcement only once the capability is there. There will ALWAYS be someone who will abuse such power and they may not be friendly to your cause.

Just something to think about . . . . .

Israeli GOVERNMENT-"backed" firm.

[BAReFO0t]

Let's be honest: This "firm" is a Mossad dingleberry.