Israeli spyware on WhatsApp used to target Indian scribes, activists; Govt seeks explanation from co

WhatsApp on Thursday said Indian journalists and human rights activists were among those globally spied upon by unnamed entities using an Israeli spyware Pegasus, leading to a furore over breach of citizens' privacy.

Following the disclosure by WhatsApp, the Indian government has asked the messaging platform to explain the matter and list out the measures that have been taken by it to safeguard privacy of millions of Indians.

"Government of India is concerned at the breach of privacy of citizens of India on the messaging platform Whatsapp. We have asked Whatsapp to explain the kind of breach and what it is doing to safeguard the privacy of millions of Indian citizens," IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said in a tweet.

WhatsApp had said it was suing NSO Group, an Israeli surveillance firm that is reportedly behind the technology that helped unnamed entities' spies hack into phones of roughly 1,400 users spanning across four continents, including diplomats, political dissidents, journalists and senior government officials.

However, it did not say on whose behest the phones of journalists and activists across the world were targeted.

Refusing to divulge identities or the exact number of those targeted in India, WhatsApp said it had in May stopped a highly sophisticated cyber attack that exploited its video calling system to send malware to its users.

The mobile messaging giant said it had sent a special WhatsApp message to approximately 1,400 users that it has "reason to believe were impacted by this attack to directly inform them about what happened".

While the messaging giant did not disclose the details or the number of people affected in India, a WhatsApp spokesperson said: "Indian users were among those contacted by us this week."
Denying allegations by WhatsApp, NSO had said it provides "technology to licenced government intelligence and law enforcement agencies to help them fight terrorism and serious crime" and is not "designed or licensed for use against human rights activists and journalists."
Prasad, in his tweet, said the government is committed to protecting the privacy of Indian citizens. He asserted that government agencies have a "well established protocol for interception which includes sanction and supervision from highly ranked officials in central and state governments, for clear stated reasons in national interest."