Pegasus spyware is a piece of software designed to target smartphones and monitor their communications, allowing its attackers to steal text messages and other sensitive data from the infected device.
It is software mainly used to spy on people via their mobile phones or computer. Earlier you would have gotten a link through SMS or WhatsApp. Once you click on the link your phone would get infected. But today the technology is so improved that it does not require a link to put software into your mobile. Just a WhatsApp ping or missed call comes to your phone even if you don’t pick up the call your phone gets infected by this spyware. Pegasus can spy on you in many ways. Like it can read your text messages, it can access your media library, Read your WhatsApp messages, Record your calls, and get your location by tracking your GPS and secretly turning on your Phone’s camera and microphone. Accessing your whole contact books. It can even access your passwords.
Why was Pegasus Spyware Created ??
As Per the statement from the NSO group. Pegasus was created so that Government intelligence and Law Enforcement Agencies can use this to fight against Crime and Terrorism. For Example, the Mexican Government claims that it has used Pegasus to capture the Mexican Drug Lord El Chappo. It’s used by governments and criminal organizations across the world, including in Mexico, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Kazakhstan.
Pegasus spyware was discovered in 2018 by technology firm Lookout which said that it had been used against individuals involved in human rights activism; journalists; lawyers; activists; academics; politicians; judges; police officers and even spouses or partners engaging in intimate relationships online. Pegasus spyware can read messages and track someone’s location once installed on their phone. The program is often installed without the user’s knowledge, which makes it difficult to remove.
Pegasus is made by NSO Group an Israeli company, which has been accused of using the same tactics against journalists and political dissidents that the U.S. government used against its citizens during surveillance operations under President Barack Obama’s administration (the so-called “drone wars”).
Misuse of Pegasus Spyware
Mexican government allegedly spied on a Mexican Journalist who had exposed several corruption scams in Mexico. Later on, that Journalist was found murdered. Additionally, NSO was also named when allegedly, the Saudi Arabian Prince hacked the phone of Amazon chief, Jeff Bezos. France-based NGO Forbidden Stories revealed several misuses of Pegasus Spyware. They had technical support from the Amnesty International team. They have revealed a ‘leaked list ’ with more than 50,000 phone numbers which includes famous journalists, activists, lawyers, judges, and most shockingly French President Emanuel Macron was also on the list. And they claim that the phone numbers belong to the people who have already been spied on using Pegasus or are the Potential targets of being spied on by Pegasus. Forbidden Stories company has identified NSO clients in 11 different countries.
Pegasus is believed to have been sold on dark web markets since at least 2015, with researchers estimating that it has infected more than half a million devices around the world. The discovery of Pegasus spyware is a big deal because it’s the first instance of a piece of malicious software designed to target smartphones and monitor their communications. In a lawsuit against NSO Group filed last month by civil rights groups including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, it was alleged that the spyware had been used to target journalists critical of the government of Bahrain.
Apple said it had fixed the vulnerabilities exploited by Pegasus spyware but that its products were only vulnerable when a customer had downloaded malicious software unknowingly. “Our analysis shows that none of these issues could have been exploited by an attacker without having compromised the user’s device,” Apple said in a statement. “We, therefore, believe this vulnerability does not exist in any current version of iOS.”
Google also said it had patched vulnerabilities used by the attackers but that they could only have been used by someone already within the phone’s ecosystem.
Pegasus Spyware in India
Talking about India, this list had the names of more than 300 Indians who were allegedly snooped on between the year 2017 and 2019. Rahul Gandhi and his close advisors are among the major names. The second major name is of the election strategist Prashant Kishor. Third was Abhishek Banerjee who is the nephew of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamta Banerjee. Personal secretary of Rajasthan’s CM, VHP Head Pravin Togadia, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, and Former Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa were among other big names.
The Indian Express revealed that more than two dozen Indian rights activists, lawyers, journalists, and academics were among those targeted in an alleged surveillance operation conducted through WhatsApp. The investigation by the national daily found that the spying occurred on several occasions between December 2017 and May 2018.
Conclusion
These revelations raise serious questions about the security of our smartphones and the surveillance capabilities of our governments. Consumers need to know that these vulnerabilities have been fixed on Apple devices, but it’s also essential for companies like WhatsApp to share more information about how they plan on addressing these issues. We are in a new world where cybersecurity has never been more important; Though it is very rare to snoop on a normal citizen using this high tech spyware as one need to pay approximately Rs. 4 to 5 crores to purchase this software. Still if you have any concerns about your phone or computer security, make sure it gets checked out by an expert today!
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