Israeli government agencies raided some offices of surveillance software provider NSO Group to "begin assessing allegations of breach of security against the company's Pegasus spyware" after an international media consortium claimed to have denounced various governments including celebrities, journalists and others Spied on political rivals Israel's Defense Ministry announced the raids in a tweet.
The Jerusalem Post reported that representatives of the Israeli defence apparatus visited NSO headquarters on Tuesday. An NSO spokesman confirmed the raids on the Israeli news site The Record on Wednesday. "Representatives from the Israeli Defense Ministry have visited our offices. We welcome their inspection," the spokesman said, citing the website. "The company operates in full transparency with the Israeli authorities.
We trust that this inspection shows that the facts are what the company has repeatedly alleged against the false allegations made against us in recent media attacks. " Although there is little clarity about the nature of the raids, the Israeli news agency Calcalist cited an anonymous source who described the move as "more of a formal meeting than an in-depth review of the NSO's documents and computer systems." sources said the raids were carried out on the Herzliya offices of the NSO group near Tel Aviv.
The company is currently licensed by the Israeli government, as is common in several countries where companies sell offensive security software such as hacking tools or surveillance software. These companies must register with the government and obtain an operating license. Amnesty International, part of the research consortium, issued an official statement refuting the government's claims. “Amnesty International strongly defends the findings of the Pegasus project and that the data are irrefutably linked to possible targets for the NSO Group's Pegasus spyware.
The false rumours spreading on social media are meant to detract from the widespread illegal attacks on journalists and activists. and others revealed by the Pegasus project ”.