It’s historic: screenshots of the Pegasus spyware have been published in the Israeli press, even as this malicious program continues to infect high-ranking personalities on a regular basis. The principle is simple: to interfere in your iPhone or your Android mobile discreetly and access all of your personal data to find out what you’re hiding – or not.
The main targets of this service published by the NSO Group are investigative journalists, whistleblowers, suspects in connection with terrorism or even members of government. Several brand countries have used this technology, including Morocco and Saudi Arabia. In France, it is also rumored that the DGSI is working on its own in-house alternative.
© NSO Group
An unmistakable logo
In the images that you can see above, we recognize at the top right of the interface a logo taking the appearance of a helped horse, reminiscent of the Pegasus brand. At the top left, the developer’s name appears, with just below a menu made up of numerous icons whose use is also clear. The app SMSfor example, allows you to read conversations sent with Messages by infected iPhones, without the sender or recipient noticing.
Even worse: Pegasus can also throw the camera and the microphone, so you can see and hear everything that’s going on around you. Hence the usefulness, for some, of relying on an iPad or MacBook with an audio sensor that physically disconnects.
© NSO Group
Meta platforms query
In another screenshot, we can see precisely which apps were hacked by Pegasus on a test iPhone. This is regarding WhatsApp and of Facebook, two flagship services of Meta alongside Instagram and Messenger. However, it turns out that Mark Zuckerberg’s firm ensures that its offer is secure in order to guarantee maximum confidentiality to its users… It’s a failure, especially when we know that WhatsApp has precisely been singled out in the context of a case at the origin of the very expensive divorce of Jeff Bezos, CEO of the multinational Amazon.
By: Keleops AG
