🌐 Six Governments Allegedly Deploy Israeli Spyware to Hack Messaging Apps 📱💻

A fresh report by The Citizen Lab uncovers that six governments—Australia 🇦🇺, Canada 🇨🇦, Cyprus 🇨🇾, Denmark 🇩🇰, Israel 🇮🇱, and Singapore 🇸🇬—are suspected of using spyware crafted by Israeli firm Paragon Solutions.

Founded in 2019, Paragon developed Graphite, a powerful surveillance tool capable of harvesting sensitive data from instant messaging apps like WhatsApp. ☠️📨

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🔍 How Does Graphite Work?

The spyware leverages zero-day vulnerabilities in apps, adding victims to WhatsApp groups and sending them malicious PDFs 📄. Once opened, these files trigger exploits that install Graphite on the device, giving attackers full access and even bypassing Android’s sandbox protections. 🛡️📱

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🌍 Who Were Targeted?

WhatsApp disclosed in late 2024 that around 90 journalists & civil society members globally were targeted. Victims were spread across Europe 🌍—countries like Belgium 🇧🇪, Germany 🇩🇪, Sweden 🇸🇪, and others.

Citizen Lab also found forensic traces, including a unique artifact dubbed BIGPRETZEL, identifying devices compromised by Graphite.

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🍏 Apple Also in the Crosshairs

Interestingly, iPhones weren't spared. A specific attack was detected targeting an Italy-based human rights advocate using iOS. Apple has since patched the exploit in iOS 18, reinforcing device security. 🔐📱

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🛑 The Bigger Picture

Both Meta (WhatsApp’s parent) and Apple stressed the dangers of mercenary spyware. These tools, costing millions to develop, are used to target individuals based on their profession or activism—posing serious threats to digital privacy. 🚨