NSO’s Pegasus Attacks the iPhones of Key EU Officials: Source

In yet another phishing incident, NSO’s Pegasus spyware has attacked the iPhones of the key European Union officials, according to a source. The European Justice Commissioner is among those officials. Although NSO claims that its malware wasn’t used, the company’s previous conflicting statements don’t validate its stance.

Pegasus is a form of spyware developed by NSO Group and sold to government and law enforcement agencies. The company buys zero-day vulnerabilities (flaws that aren’t known to Apple) from hackers, and its software can conduct zero-click exploits (phishing attacks that don’t require the target to interact with the system or click on anything).

NSO’s Pegasus Attacks the iPhones of Key EU Officials: Source

Receiving a certain iMessage even without viewing it or interacting with it in any way might allow an iPhone to be exploited, exposing the majority of personal data.

Apple fixes vulnerabilities whenever they are discovered, whereas NSO buys the details of new ones. Apple’s Cupertino headquarters now actively monitor for indicators that iPhones have been hacked by Pegasus and notifies victims.

A senior tech employee emailed actual details of the Pegasus threat and advised everyone to keep an eye out for the letter from Apple because non-tech employees might not comprehend the severity of the warning. At the moment, it’s unconfirmed which country utilised Pegasus to launch these vicious phishing attacks.

The attacks “could not have occurred with NSO’s tools,” according to the NSO group. While we wouldn’t put much weight on this, Reuters reports that another Israeli firm, QuaDream, sells a nearly identical type of spyware.

The United States has already prohibited the import and use of Pegasus, and it’s possible that the European Union may follow the suit.

Check out? NSOs Pegasus Hacks the iPhone of a Renowned Journalist