Bahraini, Jordanian female activists hacked with Israeli NSO spyware
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Investigations revealed the women's phones were hacked numerous times.
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Ebtism al-Saegh at the Front Line Defenders conference in Dublin (rte.ie)
Two notable female activists were hacked several times by nations employing the Israeli NSO group spyware.
An investigation by the human rights organization Front Line Defenders (FLD) discovered that the phones of Ebtisam Al-Saegh, a Bahraini human rights advocate, and Hala Ahed Deeb, who works with human rights and democracy, had been compromised.
Both women said the findings, which were confirmed by security researchers at the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab, felt like life-changing invasions of their privacy.
FDL released a statement describing that following the discovery, the women have been " living in a state of daily anxiety and fear. They are especially afraid of the possibility of exposing other female activists and victims they work with, and concerned that their families and friends are now at risk."
Citizen Lab found Al-Saegh's hone to have been hacked eight times between August and November 2019 using NSO malware. Al-Saegh, who works for Salam for Human Rights and Democracy, was harassed by Bahraini authorities, including being summoned to a Muharraq police station, interrogated, physically and sexually assaulted, and threatened with rape if she did not end her activist campaigning.
Read more: Israeli PEGASUS spying on journalists, activists worldwide
No place to feel safe
Ebtisam Al-Saegh reports feeling a loss of sense of security and is in a daily state of terror and fear.
In a statement, she expressed that her home was the only place in which she could exercise her religious and social freedoms, adding that the fear has "Restricted" her work as she is anxious that others are now at risk for contacting her.
Pegasus may intercept a mobile user's messages and images, follow their position and transform the phone into a remote listening device if it is successfully installed against a mobile phone. NSO has said that its software is licensed for use against suspected terrorists and other severe offenders by client governments and that it examines credible complaints of misuse by its clients.
An NSO spokesperson said, “We cannot directly comment on a report we haven’t seen, nor investigate based on names received in a press inquiry."
In November, the United States placed "Israel's" spyware maker NSO Group, the corporation behind the notorious Pegasus, on its list of restricted companies.
Other female activists and journalists were targeted in the past, notably the late Emirati campaigner Alaa Al-Siddiq and Al Jazeera broadcast journalist Ghada Oueiss.
In March 2021, researchers determined that Hala Deeb's mobile device was infected with Pegasus. Deeb stated that the hacking left her feeling "violated, naked, and with no dignity."
She added, “I do not communicate with my friends and I avoid talking on the phone as much as I can. I practice a kind of self-censorship sometimes when I wonder what behaviors would provoke those who hacked my phone?"
In November, six Palestinian human rights activists' cellphones were found to have malware from the renowned Israeli hacker-for-hire organization NSO Group.
Half of the researchers are linked to organizations that "Israel's" security minister controversially alleged were involved in what he called terrorism last month, according to a report by AP.
Liberal EU group calls for investigating NSO's Pegasus abuse
Two days ago, the European Parliament's third-largest group, Renew Europe, called for investigating EU governments' abuses with spyware produced by Israeli company NSO Group.
The liberal group's request comes following reports that NSO's Pegasus spyware was used to hack the devices of Hungarian and Polish opposers, politicians, journalists, lawyers, and government critics.
Sophie in ’t Veld, a Dutch member of the European Parliament, said, “We need a full inquiry into the Pegasus spyware scandal. European democracy is being undermined, and the EU should act accordingly."
The Pegasus spyware also hacked the phones of at least 35 journalists and other citizens in El Salvador during a hack attack on news outlet El Faro and other targets in the country.
