July 20, 2021
Amazon’s cloud service Amazon Web Services has shut down infrastructure and accounts connected to Israeli surveillance provider NSO Group, according to a Vice report on Monday.
NSO Group’s spyware was used in attempted and successful hacks of 37 smartphones belonging to journalists, government officials and human rights activists around the world, according to an investigation by 17 media organizations published on Sunday.
The allegations about the use of the software, known as Pegasus, were reported on Sunday by the Washington Post, the Guardian, Le Monde and 14 other global media groups.
Pegasus infects iPhones and Android devices and allows hackers to extract messages, photos and emails, record calls and secretly activate microphones and cameras.
Targets include politicians and heads of state, business executives, activists and several members of the Arab royal family.
More than 180 journalists from media companies including CNN, the New York Times and Al Jazeera were also on the list.
NSO denied the report and said that its product was only intended for use by government intelligence and law enforcement agencies. It states that the software is designed for use against criminals and terrorists and is only available to military, law enforcement and intelligence services from nations without significant human rights violations.
Amazon did not immediately clear whether the accounts were linked to the NSO group.
For more information, read the original stories in the BBC and Reuters.
