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John Scott-Railton Profile picture
@jsrailton
Jul 18, 2021 • 37 tweets • 44 min read • Read on X
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BREAKING: massive, global leak of the targets of NSO Group's Pegasus spyware. *huge deal.*

Forensic investigation by @AmnestyTech
in collaboration with @FbdnStories reporters.

We @citizenlab conducted peer review.

Here's an explainer THREAD.
washingtonpost.com/investigations… Image
2. Background: the already-notorious NSO Group makes mercenary spyware to silently & remotely hack iPhones & Androids.

Many of their government customers are authoritarians.

Most cannot resist the temptation to target their critics, reporters, human rights groups etc. Image
3. More about leaked numbers & targets in a sec, but first you need to know:

@AmnestyTech just released a report with technical analysis of NSO's infrastructure... & analysis validating w/forensics that some phones were infected with Pegasus.

amnesty.org/en/latest/rese…
4. We @citizenlab independently peer reviewed @AmnestyTech's forensic methodology, including how they identify an infected phone.

Our review, led by my colleague @billmarczak, judged their forensics & research methodology to be SOUND.

citizenlab.ca/2021/07/amnest… Image
5. Now, to the findings: >50k numbers were leaked that are reportedly part of the infection & targeting workflow with Pegasus.

To help validate the relationship between these numbers & infections @AmnestyTech got consent to forensically examine a subset of the devices. Image
6. The @FbdnStories consortium worked w/the leaked phone numbers... what they found reveals 10 of NSO Group's customers insatiable intent to snoop.

And the massive scale of the operation.

- Mexico customer > 15,000
- Morocco > 10,000
- UAE > 10,00

Etc. Image
7. #SaudiArabia 🇸🇦 murdered & dismembered Jamal Khashoggi.

Jamal's wife was targeted with Pegasus spyware before the killing...

Then his fiancee was hacked multiple times just days after.

@citizenlab independently confirmed findings.

#PegasusProject
washingtonpost.com/investigations… ImageImageImageImage
8. #HUNGARY 🇭🇺

Ask the government for comment... get hacked.

Hungary's far-right PM Viktor Orbán is using Pegasus spyware to surveil & attack Hungary's independent media, like @direkt36, @panyiszabolcs, and many more.

Story: @shaunwalker7 theguardian.com/news/2021/jul/… ImageImageImageImage
9. #INDIA🇮🇳 Over 40 reporters, major opposition figures, serving ministers in the #Modi government, members of the security services and beyond are in the list.

Story to watch as the scandal unfolds there.

Story @svaradarajan @thewire_in
thewire.in/government/pro… Image
10. HUNDREDS of journalists around the globe are on the #PegasusProject list.

NSO Group's role in fueling the authoritarian assault on democratic values (like a free press) is coming into sharp focus

theguardian.com/world/2021/jul… ImageImageImageImage
11. NSO Group puts up a facade of caring about human rights, doing due diligence, etc.

This leak exposes the farce of that performance.

When your customers are dictators... they will do bad things. NSO knows this. We know it.

Now everybody knows it. Image
12. Continuing with cases.... in #FRANCE 🇫🇷

#PegasusProject list includes @edwyplenel, founder of independent news site @Mediapart, a reporter from @lemondefr, etc..

Story lemonde.fr/projet-pegasus… Image
13. in #Mexico 🇲🇽 Journalist Cecilio Pineda Birto was getting death threats for reporting on official collusion with a cartel capo...

...then his number showed up on the #PegasusProject list.

Then he was assassinated.
theguardian.com/news/2021/jul/… ImageImageImageImage
14. Bookmark this thread. Things are only getting started.

I'll be updating it with more cases & context as #PegasusProject revelations keep dropping.
15. REASON TO CARE #1

So, you didn't know today's #PegasusProject hacking victims personally.

But tomorrow? Who knows. You don't.

#NSOGROUP is aggressively pitching *local* cops, including in USA 🇺🇸

Pause. Think about the oversight at your local PD.

vice.com/en/article/889… ImageImageImageImage
16. REASON TO CARE #2:

Since all phones are vulnerable, #Pegasus spyware lets its autocrat-users *export fear*

They want want *you* to be afraid to criticize them.

Yes, you. A continent away. In a democracy.

Think about the implications.
7. REASON TO CARE #3:

Think only human rights defenders & journalists get hacked with #Pegasus?

Wrong.

Good chance officials responsible for the national security of YOUR country have been / will be targeted.

Example pic: 2019 #NSOGroup WhatsApp hack.
reuters.com/article/us-fac… Image
18. Know who else is saying #NSOGroup must be stopped?

Big tech.

These days they are hitting back hard against the mercenary spyware industry for hacking their products & users.

E.g. this thread by @wcathcart @WhatsApp's CEO.👇
19. #INDIA🇮🇳 (2/)

She accused the Chief Justice of India’s Supreme Court of sexual harassment.

Just days later:

Her phone. Her husband's phone. Their family members..

11 in total then showed up on the #PegasusProject list.

thewire.in/rights/ranjan-… ImageImageImage
20. #FRANCE 🇫🇷 Claude Mangin is campaigning for the release of her husband, a political activist, from a #moroccan prison.

She's in France.

Last month her iPhone 11 was silently hacked w/#Pegasus spyware. A second iPhone she borrowed? Also infected.
washingtonpost.com/technology/202… ImageImageImage
21. BREAKING: Americans 🇺🇸 including US. Gov. officials are on the #PegasusProject list...

...even the #Biden administration's lead Iran negotiator Robert Malley!

#NSOGroup is an urgent national security problem for the United States.
washingtonpost.com//national-secu… Image
22. #MEXICO 🇲🇽: At least *50 people* close to the president ... are on the #PegasusProject spyware list.

They were put there while he was campaigning.

-His wife
-Family members, drivers, doctor
-Aides, chief of staff
-Doctor...

#PegasusProject
Story theguardian.com/news/2021/jul/… ImageImage
23. Paul Rusesabagina inspired Hotel #Rwanda 🇷🇼

He's become a critic of the gov., and was recently thrown in jail.

His American 🇺🇸 daughter, while advocating for his release, has been incessantly surveilled w/ #Pegasus.

#PegasusProject
By @skirchy theguardian.com/news/2021/jul/… ImageImageImage
24. Policies to stop the global spyware catastrophe?

Experts @davidakaye & @MarietjeSchaake say:

- Immediate moratorium on sale & transfer
-Rule-of-law requirements on users
-Victims must be able to sue
-Global principles of conduct

#PegasusProject
washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/… ImageImageImageImage
25. #INDIA 🇮🇳 (3/) Rahul Gandhi was Prime Minister #Modi's main opponent in the 2019 nat'l elections.

During the campaign, 2 of his phones were put on the #PegasusProject list, and 5 of his friends & fellow Congress party officials.

theguardian.com/news/2021/jul/… Image
26. #NSOGroup & #Pegasus spyware customers are issuing panicky, fairy-tale denials.

Here's my take.

#PegasusProject
27. BREAKING: 10 prime ministers, 3 presidents & a king on the #PegasusProject spyware list.

Included, French president @EmmanuelMacron
🇫🇷

Crystal clear: #NSOGroup is a global national security threat.

Story: washingtonpost.com/world/2021/07/… Image
28. #NSOGroup, after courting a lot of press, is suddenly not interested in talking....

So begins the hope-this-dies-down phase of crisis management?
#PegasusProject
29. NEW "there's gotta be some accountability for spies-for-hire"

Senator @RonWyden to Senate Intelligence Committee yesterday in light of #PegasusProject revelations about #NSOGroup spyware.
Full:
30. NEW: 1st legal complaint from #Pegasus victims over latest spyware revelations has landed in France 🇫🇷

Brought by 2 journalists, supported by press freedom org @RSF_inter

Their statement says more complaints inbound.
#PegasusProject
rsf.org/en/news/after-… ImageImageImage
31. NEW: Dalai Lama's inner circle on the #PegasusProject list. (He's not thought to carry a phone)

Happened in period before & after a private meeting with @BarackObama.

#India🇮🇳 suspected as #NSOGroup #spyware client responsible.

Report: theguardian.com/news/2021/jul/… ImageImageImageImage
32. NEW: While #NSOGroup is trying to distract you with a counter narrative...

Here are #Indian 🇮🇳 Police barging into the offices of one of the #PegasusProject media outlets. 👇
35. TODAY: @WhatsApp CEO @wcathcart rubbishes #NSOGroup's denials:

- #PegasusProject reporting consistent w/targeting in #NSOGroup's 2019 attack on WhatsApp users.
- Points out: in *only* 2 weeks 1.4k numbers were confirmed targeted in 2019. Do the math.

theguardian.com/technology/202… ImageImage
36. BIG DEAL: today @WhatsApp CEO @wcathcart *publicly confirmed* that senior national security officials of US allies🇺🇸 were targeted with #Pegasus spyware in 2019.

Clear message: #NSOGroup spyware is a national security threat.

By @skirchy theguardian.com/technology/202… Image
37. Taking #NSOGroup's denials at face value?

CEO: "you won't reach 50,000 #Pegasus targets since the company was founded"

FACT: there were >1,400 *confirmed* targets in just 2 weeks in 2019 per @WhatsApp.

At this rate NSO would have easily reached 50k+
calcalistech.com/ctech/articles… Image
38. Not familiar with the 2019 #NSOGroup attack on @WhatsApp?

#Pegasus spyware was used to target people via WhatsApp in 2019. WhatsApp spotted it, quickly shut it down, notified all targets...and then *sued* NSO.

We @citizenlab helped investigate.
washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/…
39. "A.Q. Khans of the cyber world"

🇺🇸 US lawmakers just came out swinging against mercenary hacking company #NSOGroup.

Statement: US Gov must impose consequences in light of latest revelations of spyware misuse.

Reps @Malinowski @RepKatiePorter @JoaquinCastrotx @RepAnnaEshoo ImageImageImage

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More from @jsrailton

John Scott-Railton Profile picture
May 7
It is hard to denounce China's Great Firewall when European politicians are preparing to demand the same thing.

It always starts with a call to protect children.

But it ends with adults needing permission to share their political views.

Embarrassingly short sighted.
2/ Parents want to protect their children, but once you build & implement bones of a system like this, with government developed 'verification' apps you've loaded the gun & pointed it at free expression.

You also suppress innovation.
3/ The funny thing? Every dictatorial regime has struggled to fight VPNs..

So what happens? You wind up with motivated & well-resourced people circumventing your controls...

And a society where everyone simultaneously feels less private & like they should be self-censoring.
Read 5 tweets
John Scott-Railton Profile picture
May 2
PAY ATTENTION: China just figured out a global veto on who gets to speak.

#RightsCon is a massive tech & rights conference.

Thousands attend from everywhere.

It was scheduled for next week in #Zambia with their gov's full cooperation.

Then, 🇨🇳#China made a call. 1/Image
2/ Last Monday, the #Zambian endorsed #RightsCon. Again.

Then, pressure from #China came down hard.

Almost immediately, things went sideways.

Starting at the border...

rightscon.org/rc26-statement/Image
Image
3/ People were already flying in from all over the globe to #Zambia... thousands were to follow.

Suddenly the tone at customs changed.

Customs officials were telling exhausted & puzzled attendees that their conference was cancelled.

Meanwhile? Official silence.

Weird, right?Image
Read 8 tweets
John Scott-Railton Profile picture
Apr 9
BREAKING: You checked the weather this morning.

And you just told a surveillance company where you sleep.

Meet #Webloc, used by ICE, cops & foreign govs to track 500m+ phones.

No warrant required.

Our latest @citizenlab investigation + how to protect yourself 🧵/1Image
Image
2/ Heard of ADINT aka ADvertising INTelligence?

Your apps don't just show ads.

They stream of info about your GPS location + a unique identifier to HUNDREDS OF BROKERS EVERY SECOND.

The industry swears the data is "anonymous" but it's actually a Spies-eye-view. Of everyone.Image
3/ Companies peddle the BS that advertising data is 'anonymous'

They want to keep you in the dark.

Because, behind the scenes...your weather app is a blinking tracking beacon.

And then players like @penlink turn that beacon into a data flow.

And sell it to governments.
Read 15 tweets
John Scott-Railton Profile picture
Mar 19
NEW: French sailor reveals position of aircraft carrier with his fitness app.

Run tracking app @Strava shows Charles de Gaulle as it steams across the Med.

#stravaleaks strike..again!

Story by @lemonde. 1/ Image
Image
2/ The massive OPSEC threat posted by fitness apps isn't just well known. It keeps happening.

I first wrote about it in...2018!

Hostile forces can use #Fitleaking for intel gathering, planning attacks...even targeting missile strikes.

Receipts: web.archive.org/web/2022081919…Image
Image
Image
Image
3/ Poor Arthur. But this is an institutional signal that, ~8 years in, militaries are still allowing enough location-aware devices in that it's a big threat.

Incidentally, the @lemondefr team has now been on the #stravaleaks issue for 3 years! I

It just keeps happening.

By @AsiaBalluff @seb_bourdon @liselottemas @antoineschirer
lemonde.fr/international/…Image
Image
Read 7 tweets
John Scott-Railton Profile picture
Mar 11
UPDATE: @Plaid for AI happened faster than I warned.

We are in a historic transformation around AI agents.

Disruption will extend to the core of your privacy.

Companies know the appeal of agentic AI & are working to lock consumers into ecosystems designed to maximize data extraction.

It's not too late, but it might be soon.

But the thing about transformative moments is that new possibilities often open simultaneously with the risks.

We need to build, experiment with & use good private + open AI tools, local models that respect privacy by default & confidential inference that prevents companies from mining the data they process.

Do that & give us a fighting chance for future that respects our freedom, and our boundaries.

Sleep on the challenge of building openly & we relinquish the playing field to the same companies and dynamics that already degrade our autonomy...only faster & everywhere.Image
2/ What's the deal with @Plaid?

I find people are dimly aware about something involving connecting banking accounts.

I bet you don't know that Plaid helps themselves to mountains of your financial data in exchange for the convenience.Image
3/ Basically, by providing 'rails' @Plaid has managed to get an absolutely gods-eye-view on peoples financial behavior.

In real time.

That data is available to other companies. And governments.

You are the product.Image
Read 5 tweets
John Scott-Railton Profile picture
Mar 10
BREAKING: powerful iPhone hacking tools used by Chinese criminals originated from US defense giant L3 Harris.

The $LHX zero-click exploits went to Russian spies too.

Unbelievable harm to our collective security.

Scoop by @lorenzofb, here's why this matters 1/Image
Image
2/ Last week, the team @google blew open a massive hacking operation: #Coruna.

A Chinese hacking operation somehow had a huge catalogue of very, very good iPhone exploits stealing banking information from people all over the web.

Hard to overstate how bizarre this was...Image
Image
3/ Thing is, the powerful #Coruna exploits didn't originate with Chinese cybercriminals.

Some months before they were used by #Russian government hackers.

But before that? Well, as @Google Threat Intel described it, it was being used by a customer of a surveillance company...

Report cloud.google.com/blog/topics/th…Image
Image
Read 16 tweets

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