Paris: French President Emmanuel Macron called a national security meeting on Thursday morning in which the Israeli-made . will be discussed Pegasus spyware Government spokesman Gabriel Attal said this week after reports of its use in France surfaced.
“The president is following this topic closely and takes it very seriously,” Atal told France Inter radio, adding that the unscheduled national security meeting would be “dedicated to the Pegasus issue and the question of cyber security”.
NSO: Macron was not targeted by Pegasus spyware
An official from an Israeli cyber security company NSO Group said on Wednesday that the firm’s controversial Pegasus spyware tool was not used to target French President Emmanuel Macron.
The comments came in the form of Reporters Without Borders (RSF) urged Israel to suspend exports of spy technology after heads of state – including Macron – and scores of journalists and rights activists list alleged targets selected for potential surveillance.
We “can come out in particular and say with certainty that the President of France, Macron, was not a target,” said Chaim Gelfand, Chief Compliance Officer. NSO group, told a news channel.
But he also noted that “there have been some cases in which we are not so comfortable”, noting that in such circumstances the firm “usually contacts the client and has a full lengthy discussion … to try to understand for what were his valid reasons, if any, for using the system.”
Gelfand’s comments were broadcast on the same day that RSF chief Christophe Deloire called on Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett to “immediately suspend surveillance technology exports until a protective regulatory framework is established”.
DeLore’s call came after a list of 50,000 phone numbers selected by NSO Group customers was leaked. The number reportedly included Macron and 13 other heads of state.
Pegasus can hack into mobile phones without a user knowing, allowing customers to read every message, track a user’s location, and tap into the phone’s camera and microphone.
NSO has contracts with 45 countries, and says Israel’s Defense Ministry should approve its deals. The company does not identify its customers.
However, rights group Amnesty International and the Paris-based organization forbidden stories NSO’s government clients include Bahrain, India, Mexico, Morocco, Rwanda and Saudi Arabia.
The. Reporting by media outlets including Guardian, Le Monde and Thee Washington Post found that around 200 journalists from organizations including AFP were on the list.
“Enabling governments to install the spyware used to monitor hundreds of journalists and their sources around the world is a huge democratic problem,” Deloire said.
NSO, an Israeli technology giant, is based in Herzliya, north of Tel Aviv, and has 850 employees.
“The president is following this topic closely and takes it very seriously,” Atal told France Inter radio, adding that the unscheduled national security meeting would be “dedicated to the Pegasus issue and the question of cyber security”.
NSO: Macron was not targeted by Pegasus spyware
An official from an Israeli cyber security company NSO Group said on Wednesday that the firm’s controversial Pegasus spyware tool was not used to target French President Emmanuel Macron.
The comments came in the form of Reporters Without Borders (RSF) urged Israel to suspend exports of spy technology after heads of state – including Macron – and scores of journalists and rights activists list alleged targets selected for potential surveillance.
We “can come out in particular and say with certainty that the President of France, Macron, was not a target,” said Chaim Gelfand, Chief Compliance Officer. NSO group, told a news channel.
But he also noted that “there have been some cases in which we are not so comfortable”, noting that in such circumstances the firm “usually contacts the client and has a full lengthy discussion … to try to understand for what were his valid reasons, if any, for using the system.”
Gelfand’s comments were broadcast on the same day that RSF chief Christophe Deloire called on Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett to “immediately suspend surveillance technology exports until a protective regulatory framework is established”.
DeLore’s call came after a list of 50,000 phone numbers selected by NSO Group customers was leaked. The number reportedly included Macron and 13 other heads of state.
Pegasus can hack into mobile phones without a user knowing, allowing customers to read every message, track a user’s location, and tap into the phone’s camera and microphone.
NSO has contracts with 45 countries, and says Israel’s Defense Ministry should approve its deals. The company does not identify its customers.
However, rights group Amnesty International and the Paris-based organization forbidden stories NSO’s government clients include Bahrain, India, Mexico, Morocco, Rwanda and Saudi Arabia.
The. Reporting by media outlets including Guardian, Le Monde and Thee Washington Post found that around 200 journalists from organizations including AFP were on the list.
“Enabling governments to install the spyware used to monitor hundreds of journalists and their sources around the world is a huge democratic problem,” Deloire said.
NSO, an Israeli technology giant, is based in Herzliya, north of Tel Aviv, and has 850 employees.
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