WhatsApp users in more than two dozen countries have been hit by an advanced Spyware attack, with at least seven confirmed cases in Italy, which started a study into an investigation. The Spyware, coupled with the Israeli security company Paragon Solutions, was used to direct journalists, activists and members of civil society, using a “Nulklik” hack that does not require user interaction.
Affected users in Italy
Meta platforms, the parent company of WhatsApp, warned the Italian National Cyber Security Agency after it received reports that the Spyware had been used against different people in Italy.
Among the affected, Luca Casarini, a well-known migrant rescue activist and co-founder of Mediterranea were who saved people, and Francesco Cancellato, an investigative journalist. Casarini shared a WhatsApp -warning he received from the Message Service, who told him that his device had been affected. The warning coincided with the announcement of Meta that Paragon Solutions was aimed at around 90 users in more than two dozen countries.
In a statement, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's office condemned the incident and called it “particularly serious” and confirmed that the National Cyber Security Agency was investigating the case. While the Meloni office denied any involvement in the hacking attempt, it kept itself from naming the victims, referring to privacy problems. The Spyware, found in several countries of the European Union, including Belgium, Spain and Greece, is supposed to have been used for a world scale surveillance.
What is a spyware 'zero click'?
WhatsApp revealed that Paragon Solutions, which claims it is a company that is located in the US, had used a highly advanced technique to use the vulnerability in its platform. The “zero click” nature of the spyware means that it can infiltrate a device without any action from the target, making it particularly difficult to detect. Meta has issued a cease-and-disist letter to Paragon Solutions and demanded the company from preventing its activities aimed at WhatsApp users.
The Spyware was part of a broader surveillance effort involving paragon, a company that was previously linked to selling spyware tools to government customers under the guise of combating crime and protecting national security. However, the use of such instruments against journalists, activists and other figures from civil society brings serious ethical problems.
Casarini, who has had to deal with criticism from anti-migrant groups in Italy for his humanitarian work, expressed his shock and anger about the burglary and called it a 'violation of democracy'. Cancellato, the journalist, said that he was also 'shocked' by the infringement, but promised to reserve the judgment about who was behind the hack until his newspaper carried out his own investigation.
Citizen Lab, a Canada -based Watchdog Group, is called whatsapp's reaction and the company has sworn to continue its efforts to protect the privacy of its users. Researchers have warned that the proliferation of commercial spyware is becoming an increasing threat to privacy and freedom of expression, in particular because mercenary pywar companies such as Paragon Solutions continue to work without sufficient supervision.
(With Reuters entrances)
