WEST BANK (Dispatches) – The Zionist regime’s police have used the notorious spyware Pegasus to hack the phones of political activists, mayors, senior officials in a company, a person close to a Knesset member, and criminals, without a court order, according to a report by Calcalist newspaper.
Calcalist, which previously revealed the use of Pegasus against people in the occupied territories, said that it was the most blatant exploitation of the spying technology as regulations in the occupied territories lag behind.
NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware was authorized for use by senior police officers in recent years and was handled by the police’s Signet unit. The Zionist regime’s police, under the leadership of a former Shin Bet officer, bought the spyware in 2013, and has since been using it.
It targeted political activists who protested against former Zionist prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling him to resign as he faced corruption charges, bribery and breach of trust.
Calcalist titled one of its investigation pieces: “NSO company in the service of Israeli police: Burglary of phones without supervision or control.”
In November, the U.S. blacklisted the NSO Group, saying its activities were contrary to its so-called security interests.
The group’s spyware Pegasus could hack smartphones without the owner’s knowledge, using a zero-click technique, harvesting phone data, photos, emails, voice messages, and turning it into a tracking and monitoring device.
The Zionist police reportedly used Pegasus without a court order and control to hack a mayor’s phone to collect evidence that he has received a bribe, which was used against him later, according to Calcalist.
It also deployed Pegasus to spy on an associate to a Knesset member in an attempt to collect evidence of corruption, and on senior employees in a company to prove financial offences, the report said without revealing the names of the targets.
In other cases, however, the Zionist police willingly used Pegasus to hack the phones of people, who themselves were not under probe, to assist officers in collecting material that could then be used to pressure people who were being investigated.
Calcalist reported that Pegasus was “an easy option” for the Zionist police to collect evidence.
During Netanyahu’s tenure as prime minister, which ended in June 2021, Pegasus was part of a “cyber diplomacy” push to forge closer ties with countries in Africa and the Persian Gulf.
The Pegasus software has been used by governments, including Morocco, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, to illegally access the phone data of activists and journalists worldwide.