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| The United States bans the company from developing Pegasus software |
The US Commerce Department has ordered US companies not to sell their technology to the NSO Group, citing reports that Pegasus spyware is being used against journalists, government officials, activists and others.
The US Department of Commerce said in a press release that the company will be added to the list of companies because its tools threaten the rules-based international order if they are sold to repressive foreign governments.
Pegasus is software designed to hit targets without warning and allow police and intelligence agencies to access phone text messages, photos and passwords - all without leaving a trace.
The Washington Post reported in July that spyware could infect someone's phone through an invisible text message without the target having to click a link or take any action to infect their fully updated phone.
As a result of Project Pegasus, NSO Group's Pegasus spyware has come into focus. A group of journalists has revealed a list of names that appear to be linked to spyware.
The list includes journalists, activists, heads of state and others from all over the world. These are the people whose software should not be used as a target, according to the NSO Group.
Project Pegasus also analyzed some journalists' phones and found evidence that government agencies had almost certainly installed spyware on them, with NSO Group saying those were the only customers it sold software and services to.
Banning US companies from exporting their products to the NSO Group
The NSO Group also made headlines earlier this year. Mexican journalists have reportedly been targeted by Pegasus.
WhatsApp has sued NSO Group for using flaws in the messaging app to hack people's phones. The FBI is said to have at least investigated the company's hack of Jeff Bezos' phone.
The Ministry of Commerce announced the addition of the National Bureau of Statistics group to the list of entities. This prevents US companies from exporting products to them. This is because the Company faces a significant risk of engaging in or engaging in activities that violate US national security or foreign policy interests.
It should be noted that NSO Group is not the only company recently added to the list of companies. Kandero, another Israeli computer company that sells spyware, has been blacklisted.
The US Department of Commerce has named two other companies, one from Russia and one from Singapore, involved in the sale of hacking tools.