Thread by @yoursosteam

Team TrollBusters was at #RightsCon to attend the session 'Pegasus’ reach: the impact on journalists’ inner circles and press freedom' hosted by @pressfreedom. We explored this safety concern in this story: yoursosteam.wordpress.com/pegasus-phone-… Find some important points from the session here:

Pegasus software was allegedly only sold to governments to fight crimes. But then journalists were targeted with this spyware, making it difficult for them to communicate with sources and share important stories.

In El Salvador, at least 13 journalists were targeted. Information was stolen, along with the pictures of the journalists and their families. Hackers were very interested in the personal lives of the reporters and wanted to intimidate them.

In India the phones of journalists, social activists, politicians and more were compromised. This has a chilling effect on the sources of reporters, especially people who provide anonymous quotes get identified. Thus they become vulnerable and are unable to provide information.

While the original aim for using this software was to identify criminal activity, it was then used to spy on citizens. Read ways in which a journalist can be targeted through their cell phones in this story: yoursosteam.wordpress.com/smishing-spoof…

In Morocco, reporters were targeted through the platform WhatsApp. Those who covered the country but were located outside it were also targets. Even family, friends and other reporters distanced themselves from these journalists to protect their own devices.

There is a possibility that there are other spywares that we are not aware of. This raises concerns related to privacy and increases challenges of communicating with sources.

In Mexico, 11 journalists were killed this year because they face many threats on the ground. Human rights activists and members from minority groups were also spied on.

An audience question: are phones with limited capacity that can only make calls safer? Yes, but journalists need to use advanced mobile devices because they use them for their reporting.

Many journalists only found out years later that their phones were hacked. Here are a few ways to identify if your phone is hacked: yoursosteam.wordpress.com/cell-phone-sel…

It has almost been a year since the Pegasus software was exposed for maliciously targeting journalists. Authorities across the world have failed to provide satisfactory explanations or take actions. Journalists need to know who is collecting this information and why.

The most terrifying aspect of Pegasus is that it leaves no trace. It is difficult to detect and has invaded peoples' privacy in horrifying ways. Due to this it puts constraints on journalists, free expression and free speech.

Some resources from Team TrollBusters-
Threat Infographic: bit.ly/TrollBustersIn…
Digital Hygiene Lessons: tinyurl.com/TBHygiene
Toxic Avenger Magazine: troll-busters.com
Gen Zeitgeist Curriculum: tinyurl.com/TB-GenZ
Student Press Guide: yoursosteam.wordpress.com/student-editio…