NSO Group
Israeli cyber-espionage and malware firm / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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NSO Group Technologies (NSO standing for Niv, Shalev and Omri, the names of the company's founders) is an Israeli cyber-intelligence firm primarily known for its proprietary spyware Pegasus, which is capable of remote zero-click surveillance of smartphones.[3] It employed almost 500 people as of 2017.[2][4][5]
Company type | Private |
---|---|
Industry | Technology |
Founded | 2010; 14 years ago (2010) |
Founders |
|
Headquarters | , Israel |
Key people | Yaron Shohat (Acting CEO)[1][2] |
Products | Pegasus |
Revenue | US$ 243 million (2020) |
US$ 99 million (2020) | |
Owner |
|
Number of employees | 750 (2021) |
Website | nsogroup.com |
NSO claims that it provides authorized governments with technology that helps them combat terror and crime.[6][7] The company says that it deals with government clients only.[8] Pegasus spyware is classified as a weapon by Israel and any export of the technology must be approved by the government.[9]
According to several reports, NSO Group spyware has been used to target human rights activists and journalists in various countries,[10][11][12] was used for state espionage against Pakistan,[13] for warrantless domestic surveillance of Israeli citizens by Israeli police,[14] and played a role in the murder of Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi by agents of the Saudi government.[15]
In 2019, instant messaging company WhatsApp and its parent company Meta Platforms (then known as Facebook) sued NSO under the United States Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.[6][7] In 2021, Apple filed a lawsuit against NSO in the U.S.,[16] and the US included NSO Group in its Entity List for acting against U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, effectively banning U.S. companies from supplying NSO.[17]