NewsClick

NewsClick
  • हिन्दी
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Covid-19
  • Science
  • Culture
  • India
  • International
  • Sports
  • Articles
  • Videos
search
menu

SUBSCRIBE AND SUPPORT

image/svg+xml
  • All Articles
  • Newsclick Articles
  • All Videos
  • Newsclick Videos
  • हिन्दी
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Science
  • Culture
  • India
  • Sports
  • International
  • Africa
  • Latin America
  • Palestine
  • Nepal
  • Pakistan
  • Sri Lanka
  • US
  • West Asia
About us
Grievance Redressal Mechanism
Newsletter
Facebook - Newsclick Twitter - Newsclick Instagram - Newsclick Youtube - Newsclick RSS - Newsclick
close menu
×
You deserve independent, critical media. Subscribe and Support
Politics
India
International

‘Operators in India Hacked’ UK Foreign Office Phones Using Pegasus

A Citizen Lab analysis showed that the UAE, Cyprus and Jordan also hacked UK government phones between July 2020 and June 2021.
Newsclick Report
19 Apr 2022
‘Operators in India Hacked’ UK Foreign Office Phones Using Pegasus

Two days before Boris Johnson’s first visit as prime minister to India, it has been revealed that ‘operators’ in India, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Cyprus and Jordan used the Israeli spyware Pegasus to target phones of United Kingdom (UK) government officials between July 2020 and June 2021.

According to an analysis by Toronto-based Internet watchdog Citizen Lab—which has exposed the use of the NSO Group’s Pegasus by various governments, including India, several times—and reported by The New Yorker for the first time, the malware was also found on a device connected to 10 Downing Street.

A UK official confirmed to The New Yorker that the network was compromised. UK’s National Cyber Security Centre, a branch of British intelligence, tested several phones at Downing Street, including Johnson’s. “It’s a bloody hard job,” the official said adding that the agency was unable to locate the infected device. Therefore, the quality and quantity of data that could have been compromised were never determined.

“When we found the No. 10 case, my jaw dropped,” John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at the Citizen Lab told the American weekly magazine. Another senior researcher Bill Marczak said, “We suspect this included the exfiltration of data.”

Based on the servers to which the data were transmitted, Citizen Lab suspects that the UAE was behind the hack. “We confirm that in 2020 and 2021, we observed and notified the government of the United Kingdom of multiple suspected instances of Pegasus spyware infections within official UK networks. These included the Prime Minister’s Office and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Now, the Foreign Commonwealth and Development office, or FCDO),” Ron Deibert, director, Citizen Lab, said in a statement.

A Citizen Lab analysis shows FCDO phones were hacked on, at least, five occasions—from July 2020 to June 2021. “The suspected infections relating to the FCO (FCDO) were associated with Pegasus operators that we link to the UAE, India, Cyprus, and Jordan. Because the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office and its successor office, the Foreign Commonwealth and Development office, have personnel in many countries, the suspected FCO infections we observed could have been related to FCO devices located abroad and using foreign SIM cards,” Deibert said.

“Given that a UK-based lawyer involved in a lawsuit against the NSO Group was hacked with Pegasus in 2019, we felt compelled to ensure that the UK government was aware of the ongoing spyware threat, and took appropriate action to mitigate it,” Deibert added.

Scott-­Railton, who had thought that the “US, UK and other top-tier cyber powers were moving slowly on Pegasus because it wasn’t a direct threat to their national security” said that he was mistaken. “Even the UK was underestimating the threat from Pegasus, and had just been spectacularly burned.”

The UAE refused to comment on the revelations despite multiple requests for comment. One NSO employee told The New Yorker the company was unaware of the hack and termed the report “false”. “When we hear about every phone call that is being hacked over the globe, we get a report immediately. Information raised in the inquiry indicates that these allegations are, yet again, false and could not be related to NSO products for technological and contractual reasons.”

An NSO Group spokesperson told MailOnline. “NSO continues to be targeted by a number of politically motivated advocacy organisations, like Citizens Labs and Amnesty, to produce inaccurate and unsubstantiated reports based on vague and incomplete information. We have repeatedly cooperated with governmental investigations where credible allegations merit.”

Get the latest reports & analysis with people's perspective on Protests, movements & deep analytical videos, discussions of the current affairs in your Telegram app. Subscribe to NewsClick's Telegram channel & get Real-Time updates on stories, as they get published on our website.
India
Boris Johnson visit
Pegasus
NSO group
Israeli Spyware
UAE
Cyprus
Jordan
10 Downing Street
United Kingdom
Britain
Related Stories
Journalist Mohammed Zubair (C.) was arrested shortly after bringing attention to Islamophobic remarks by a leading BJP official

Is Freedom of Expression Under Threat in India?

Cases of violence against women have doubled in Egypt in the last year, according to a new report

Femicides in Egypt, Jordan Spark Anger, Calls For Change

Trip waiver

India-South Africa TRIPS Waiver Proposal Dies at WTO

Queen Rania of Jordan is among the fiercest supporters of women's empowerment

Women in Jordan: Real Progress Through Social Enterprises?

DW

UK Rail Workers Stage Biggest Strike in 30 Years

Foreign Ministers of India, Israel, UAE, US (clockwise) held a videoconference in October 2021 to launch a ‘Quad’ for West Asia

Why India Must Decouple From I2U2

'Islamophobia' controversy: Why India cannot risk a fallout with the Gulf

'Islamophobia' Controversy: Why India Cannot Risk a Fallout With the Gulf

Sidhu Moose Wvala, 28, had a massive fan following abroad, particularly the UK and Canada

India: Why are Punjab Singers Under Attack by Criminal Gangs?

In the High Noon of the Liberal View of Nature

World Environment Day: US and China Must cut Emissions, Local-level Action Vital

Geetanjali Shree receives the Booker Prize on May 26, 2022

Booker Prize Winner Geetanjali Shree on Hindi Literature

Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on WhatsAppShare via EmailShare on RedditShare on KindlePrint
Share
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on WhatsAppShare via EmailShare on RedditShare on KindlePrint
Share
You deserve independent, critical media. We want readers like you. Support independent, critical media. Subscribe to Newsclick.

Subscribe and Support


Latest

  • conteniment water.

    High Levels of Toxic Chemical 'Nonylphenol' in Water Across India Concerning: Study

  • kerala startup

    Kerala Emerges as Top Performer in 2021 Start-up Rankings

  • Gauri Lankesh

    Gauri Lankesh Trial Commences in Bengaluru, Key Witnesses Appear in Court

  • Shreyas Iyer, Indian cricket team vs England Edbaston Test

    What Went Wrong for the Indian Cricket Team at Edgbaston? Shortsightedness, Denial, and Some More Denial

  • Load More
Newsletter
About us
Grievance Redressal Mechanism