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A new report by the European Parliament on Tuesday painted a grim picture for EU democracy by detailing the growing use of the hired spyware Pegasus. In the past 18 months, four EU countries, including Hungary, Poland, Spain and Greece, have been accused of using spyware or equivalent technology on their citizens.
Software Pegasus and its less sophisticated version Predator, developed by the Israeli company NSO Group, are among the best-known brands in Europe, according to the report. Once this spyware infiltrates a device, it can extract data and allow real-time surveillance, find passwords, track location, and even activate its camera or microphone to gather information about its owner.
While the company claims the software is designed to fight crime and terrorism, investigators found it was used by journalists, activists, dissidents, and politicians around the world.
Also see: Explainer: What is Pegasus Spyware? How does it hack into your phone to spy on you?
In a press conference, Dutch EU lawmaker Sophie in ‘t Veld introduced a draft version of the report and said that in countries such as Poland and Hungary, the use of such spyware is aimed at “controlling and even oppressing citizens”, which often Including “government critics, opposition, journalists, whistleblowers”.
In some cases, spyware can also lead to illegal surveillance, often on vague grounds, and national security immunity is repeatedly invoked to evade responsibility and maintain secrecy. In this context, “the rule of law becomes the law of the ruler,” the report said.
The liberal lawmaker who served as rapporteur said her team was forced to rely on publicly available sources because the EU government refused to cooperate and that “the spyware scandal is not a series of isolated cases of state abuse, but a full-blown European event,” the report said.
Also read: Israel to investigate allegations of Pegasus spyware used on its own citizens
Furthermore, in addition to the four countries mentioned above, the report also suspects the use of spyware in Cyprus. While Poland and Hungary have witnessed at least a dozen cases of illegal attacks on journalists and political opponents, Greece has also been embroiled in an escalating espionage scandal.
According to a separate Politico report, at least 33 people in Greece, including journalists, business people and MPs in the conservative NDP government, their families and politicians from the main opposition Syriza party, had illegal traces of them. Spyware Predator on their devices.
In Spain, meanwhile, the spyware was found on the mobile phone of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and the devices of several other state ministers, as well as Catalan lawmakers, lawyers and civil society organizations. Earlier this year, some Catalan lawmakers claimed that Spanish intelligence had used Pegasus software to hack into their phones.
The fallout from the Pegasus scandal also led to the resignation of Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles earlier this year. Meanwhile, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was forced to apologize and, amid mounting pressure, announced plans to ban spyware technology.
Also read: Pegasus spyware strikes again in Mexico despite government assurances: report
Likewise, Dutch EU lawmakers have called for an immediate moratorium on such spyware until appropriate regulatory action is taken. She also claims that all 27 EU countries have spyware at their disposal, even though they refuse to admit it. Countries such as Cyprus and Bulgaria have become export hubs for the spyware, the report said.
“Europe has been a hub for exports to dictatorships and authoritarian regimes such as Libya, Egypt and Bangladesh,” the report said. During the meeting, ‘t Veld also acknowledged that the findings were largely based on the work of journalists and investigators, and not received by governments ‘s confirmation.
(input from institution)
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