John Scott-Railton Profile picture
Mar 30, 2023 β€’ 9 tweets β€’ 8 min read β€’ Read on X
NEW: 11 countries ink joint statement on countering commercial #spyware proliferation & abuse.

Cite "fundamental" national security & foreign policy interest 1/

πŸ‡¦πŸ‡Ί#Australia πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦#Canada πŸ‡¨πŸ‡·#CostaRica πŸ‡©πŸ‡°#Denmark πŸ‡«πŸ‡·#France πŸ‡³πŸ‡Ώ#NewZealand πŸ‡³πŸ‡΄#Norway πŸ‡ΈπŸ‡ͺ#Sweden πŸ‡¨πŸ‡­#Switzerland πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§#UK πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ#US We, the governments of Aust...The misuse of these tools p...To advance these interests,...engaging additional partner...
2/ I'd say the joint statement on commercial #spyware is unprecedented.

A few years ago spyware like #Pegasus was was treated as a human rights issue.

But the dizzying speed of proliferation made big problems for governments, forcing them to prepare positions & action.
3/ The statement's commitment guardrails for accountable domestic #spyware use is important.

But devil will be in the implementations. Civil society will be watching.

(Note: issue wasn't covered in White House Spyware Executive Order on Monday, so nice to see USA commit here) Image
4/ Export control commitments on #Spyware. Again, important.

Worth noting, several signatories have a complex history on surveillance tech export...

So transparency about license granting & denials will be essential for accountability & to ensure commitment has teeth. Image
5/ Tracking & information sharing. Maybe public shaming? Norms? Again, important.

The mercenary #spyware industry has hidden from researchers & victims.

Let's hope it's harder for them to hide from governments. Image
6/ Commercial #spyware proliferation is now a global problem. Whether it's sold to autocrats, or to more 'democratic' governments in the EU... that wind up abusing it

But a key driver? Investment firms in the US & elsewhere. Good to see the joint statement speak to this. Image
7/ Lots of movement on #spyware this week

- The Executive Order
- Statements by @POTUS & Deputy AG Lisa Monaco
- this Joint Statement
- & more, just look at this fact sheet

Positive developments that would have been unthinkable a few years ago, but...
whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/…
8/ Spyware proliferation went too far & did too much harm.

Result? Governments are waking up & have started taking action.

But this is also a reminder of all the progress still needed on many fronts, like domestic accountability, oversight & transparency from every signatory.
9/ It remains puzzling to me as I read the joint statement on #Spyware that some EU countries are notably missing (where is #Germany?).

It also puts into stark relief that the EU Parliament's efforts on Spyware have a long way to go.

I hope there is some pressure to catch up!

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More from @jsrailton

Nov 14
Whoa: NSO Group allegedly rolled a @WhatsApp exploit to implant #Pegasus spyware even after WhatsApp sued them.

This previously-unrevealed "Erised" vector was later disabled by #WhatsApp.

These un-redacted filings are quite the read. Even some footnotes have scoops. 1/Image
2/ We learn that NSO Group had at least three @whatsapp exploits: Heaven, Eden & Erised.

The first, called Heaven, was active some time prior to Sept-Dec 2018. It worked by using manipulated messages to direct targeted devices to a malicious WhatsApp relay controlled by NSO Group.

Heaven was ultimately disabled by changes made in Sept & December 2018 by WhatsApp.

storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco…Image
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3/ After the Heaven vector stopped working, NSO Group deployed Eden, which had a key feature: it needed to pass through relays controlled by @WhatsApp.

There's some detail about how the exploit was deployed to avoid detection.

Ultimately, it was detected, leading to the lawsuit.Image
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Read 7 tweets
Oct 31
WILD: actual photo of Musk-hired door knockers being driven around #Michigan.

This group of mostly-black workers were driven in the back of a truck with no seats.

They say they were flown in, given unrealistic goals, and threatened with their lodging being cut off & being forced to pay their own way home if they couldn't meet them.

Some didn't even know which candidate they were working for.

Article by @JakeLahut
wired.com/story/elon-mus…Image
Working to help the richest man in the world get his preferred candidate into office, folks. Image
You really have to read the whole article by @JakeLahut Image
Read 4 tweets
Oct 26
I'm excited for the #HarrisWalz plan to massively expand medicare to cover in-home care.

Beautiful. So many families are are helping loved ones get through hurdles with dignity & independence. At home.

Oh wait, you hadn't heard about this?

A study shows major broadcast networks mostly ignored the policy announcement on the day she made it.
apnews.com/article/harris…Image
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Home health care is ruinously expensive.

But as everyone knows, it's often better for seniors to get help in their homes.

A study found that this new #HarrisWalz #medicare benefit is likely to help more than 14 million beneficiaries.

Chart: kff.org/medicare/issue…Image
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The #HarrisWalz in-home care medicare benefit for seniors is a big deal.

Yet major broadcast networks gave it only seconds of coverage .

mediamatters.org/broadcast-netw…Image
Read 5 tweets
Oct 21
You've probably heard about Musk's petition.

It's run on the same website that ran bait-and-switch voter registration back in August.

They had to shut it down.

The goal then: probably soak up detailed voter data.

Remember, lots of shady micro-targeting is going on right now from Musk-backed PACs.

And now? Data collection is again a key priority.

I don't know why this isn't front and center in news stories about this.Image
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2/ Coverage of Musk's actions often treats them in isolation.

The petition for example is largely covered as "is this legal?"

Good question, but if you don't focus on the systemic effort to gather data & influence voters using that data, you miss the plot.
3/ Do election influence teams /PACs backed by Musk have any special access to @X data?

His escalating offers of $$ show how important he thinks voter data is.

Well, X is a goldmine of political data.

Temptation must be there.

When will election coverage ask the question?Image
Read 7 tweets
Oct 18
BREAKING: Musk-backed PAC is micro-targeting muslim areas with ads saying Harris stands with Israel... and targeting jewish areas saying the opposite.

Writing is on the wall: Musk willing to further divide America if he thinks it will help his candidate win.

By @jason_koebler
404media.co/this-is-exactl…Image
Review the @google ads data yourself.

A "PRO-ISRAEL TEAM WE CAN TRUST" designed to look like a #HarrisWalz campaign ad is micro-targeted to areas with a high muslim population around Dearborn, Michigan.

Meanwhile, same Musk-backed PAC has a "WHY PANDER TO PALESTINE?" ad micro-targeted to areas in Pennsylvania.

The ads are getting millions of impressions.

adstransparency.google.com/advertiser/AR0…Image
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Voters around Dearborn, #Michigan are shown an ad saying that Harris "STOOD UP TO PROTESTERS" and "FOUGHT RISING ANTISEMITISM"

Meanwhile, specific areas in #Pennsylvania get an ad with the line "WHY SYMPATHIZE WITH ANTISEMITIC PROTESTERS"

The Musk-backed PAC's ads are here: adstransparency.google.com/advertiser/AR0…Image
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Read 7 tweets
Oct 17
WARNING: fake pro-#HarrisWalz advertising campaign...

Is actually run by dark money network connected to Elon Musk.

The "Progress 2028" ads & text message campaigns feature lies about Harris policies about guns, immigrants & LGBTQ issues...

The goal is clearly to mislead voters.

Dirty politics that must be investigated.

By @annalecta
opensecrets.org/news/2024/10/p…Image
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This false-flag #HarrisWalz campaign is hammering #Georgia with ad buys on @meta.

$66,140k in spend in the past week alone, shown to a custom audience. I wonder who it is?

Please reply if you've seen advertisements for "Progress 2028" or gotten text messages promoting this fake campaign.

facebook.com/ads/library/?a…Image
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They say dark money destroys democracy.

Here's a case study:

A false-flag advertising campaign weeks before the election, custom-targeting swing state voters, trying to mislead them about a candidate...

And no legal requirement to say whose money is behind it. Ever.Image
Read 4 tweets

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