WhatsApp Accuses NSO of Fresh Pegasus Targeting

Date Published

June 19, 2026

Topics

Targeted Surveillance
Pegasus, spyware, whatsapp

Mentions

John Scott-Railton

Meta’s WhatsApp said it will ask a US court to hold NSO Group in contempt, accusing the Israeli maker of Pegasus of once again using WhatsApp to try to lure targets into downloading the surveillance spyware. This violates a court order from last year that banned NSO Group from such practices. 

Speaking to Financial Times, senior researcher John Scott-Railton says “NSO Group is behaving just like the dictators they service — treating US courts as something to bypass, and hope that nobody notices.”

For The New York Times, Scott-Railton notes that NSO Group “is doing an amazing job making the argument that they should stay sanctioned and face more consequences.”

Financial Times
New York Times

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