Spyware Reform Critical After Reports Emerge Of Journalists Under Surveillance - Watchdog

World governments must act immediately to curb the abuse of Israeli spyware technology to undermine freedom of the press and monitor investigative journalists, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) announced on Monday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th July, 2021) World governments must act immediately to curb the abuse of Israeli spyware technology to undermine freedom of the press and monitor investigative journalists, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) announced on Monday.

"Spyware reform [is] critical as at least 180 journalists [are] revealed as potential Pegasus targets," the CPJ said in a statement. "[T]he Committee to ... reaffirmed its call for immediate action by governments and companies around the world to stem abuse of powerful technology that can be used to spy on the press.

The reporting, known as the Pegasus Project, was conducted by a consortium including investigative journalism nonprofit group Forbidden Stories and global media outlets including Amnesty International, CPJ said. They reported that more than 180 journalists had been identified by the consortium on a list of 50,000 phone numbers allegedly linked to clients of the Israeli NSO Group technology.

"This report shows how governments and companies must act now to stop the abuse of this spyware which is evidently being used to undermine civil liberties, not just counter terrorism and crime," CPJ Deputy Executive Director Robert Mahoney said. "No one should have unfettered power to spy on the press, least of all governments known to target journalists with physical abuse and legal reprisals."

In a statement emailed to CPJ, an NSO Group spokesperson said there was nothing to link the 50,000 numbers to his organization or to Pegasus. However, in a rebuttal published online, the company said the consortium's allegations were false, the statement added.