Another person has come forward who allegedly targeted WhatsApp using Spyware created by Israeli Company Paragon.
Beppe Caccio, one of the co-founders of Mediterranea Saving Humans, an Italian non-governmental organization supporting immigration, told TechCrunch that he was targeted by the Spyware campaign.
Caccio said that Luca Casarini, one of the co-founders of his organization, publicly said last week that he received a notification from WhatsApp after warning him of alleged spyware attacks. Ta.
Casarini said on Monday that he filed a complaint with the prosecutor’s office in Palermo, Italy, about the alleged hacking at a press conference hosted by Sandoro Lutoro, an Italian member of the European Parliament. Casarini said his goal was to find out who targeted him and his organization.
“There’s nothing to hide. People who spy have a lot to hide,” Casarini said.
Before Caccio, three other people came forward saying they received a notification from WhatsApp that he was one of about 90 people targeting Spyware created by Paragon. The other three victims include Francesco Cancellato, director of the news website. Husam El Gomati is a Libyan activist who lives in Sweden and deals with immigration issues related to Italy and Libya. and Casarini.
News from the Spyware campaign was destroyed on January 31, when WhatsApp said it had disrupted the campaign and notified about 90 targeted people. WhatsApp has not attributed the campaign to a specific government, and Paragon has not revealed which government customers are behind the campaign.
inquiry
Do you have more information about Paragon Solutions and this Spyware campaign? From non-work devices, you can safely contact Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai with a signal of +1 917 257 1382, via Telegram and Keybase @lorenzofb, or send an email. You can also contact TechCrunch via SecureDrop.
The Italian government has refused to be involved in the hacking campaign. In a press release, the Italian Prime Minister’s Office said that legally protected subjects, including journalists, were not targeted by Italian intelligence agency.
In the same press release, the Italian government said that Meta has stated that there are other targets in Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Sweden.
Apart from Austria, the governments of these countries were not contacted through either the US Embassy or other government agencies, nor did they respond to TechCrunch’s request for comment.
A spokesman for the Austrian Federal Home Ministry told TechCrunch that the Paragon attack was known to local governments, but also refused to provide more information.
At the same press conference attended by Casarini on Monday, David Yambio, co-founder of Libya’s Italy-based NGO refugees, said he was targeted by a spyware campaign. Yambio said it was not targeted through WhatsApp, but told the Guardian on November 13 that Apple notified him about a “mercian spyware attack.”
At this point, it is unclear whether Yambio was part of the same hacking campaign as Paragon’s Spyware targeted campaign.
Neither the Italian government’s Paragon or a spokesman responded to TechCrunch’s request for comment.
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