A California court has ordered israeli spyware merchant nso group to pay $ 167.25m in Punitive DamagesAnd $ 444,719 in compensatory damages, for enabling state-backed hacks of mobile devices belonging to 1,400 users of meta's whatsapp messaging service.
The judgment, handed down this week in a federal couthouse, comes five months after us District Judge Phyllis Hamilton Rules in Favor of Meta in the caseHaving reviewed evidence that NSO's pegasus code had transited Whatsapp's California-Based Servers 43 Times DURS DURIN MATIMES DURING MOY 2019 after ex -loiting a vulnerability, Cve-2019-3568In the Whatsapp Voice Calling Feature.
The court had also repaired nso infringed Whatsapp's terms of service by using it for malicious or illgal purposes.
Besides Spending Millions of Dollars Every year Hacking and Developing Malicious Explits for Instant Messaging Apps, Mobile Browsers and Operating Systems, NSO BECAME TACAME TACAME TACAME TATERS SYSTEMS Systemic Wrongoing by Its Customers, Mostly Government Agency and Many in States Hotile to Israel.
Details of how its notorious zero-click spyware package pegasus was found to trickle out Following a lengthy investigation by Citizen LabAn Interdisciplinary Laboratory Based at the University of Toronto's Munk School of Global Affairs. Famously, pegasus was implicated in The murder of a Washington post Journalist by the saudi Arabian Government, Among Many Things,
NSO Has Always mained that it has no responsibility for how its products were used, but reepeatedly insisted. It appears likely that this disconnect Proved a significant factor in meta's victory.
Nso has additional been Subjected to us sanctions And has also been Sued by appleAlthough that case was dropped in 2024 For security reasons,
In a blog postA Meta speakesperson haled an “Important step forward forward for privacy and security as the first Victory against the development and use of use of Illegal spyware that threads the safety and privacy of evreity of evreity.
The firm said: “Today, the jury's decision to force nso, a notorious foreign spyware merchant, to pay damages is a critical deteriornt to this malicious industry acts ACIRIOUS ACTS ACMED ACERCIAN Companies and the privacy and security of the people we serve.
“For the first time, this trial put spyware executives on the stand and expertly how their surveillance-for-hire system-shrouded in so much secrets-operates. Covertly Compromise People's Phones with Spyware Capable of Hoovening Up Information from Any App Installed on the device. NSO conceded: 'Every kind of user data on the phone.' It can even remove activate the phone's Mic and Camera – All without People's Knowledge, Let Alone Authorization. “
It said that it would continue to pursue mercenary spyware vendors in the courts, describing their “MALICIOUS” Technologies as a “Threat to the Entreat to the Entreat to the Entreat to the Entre
Cyber Accountability
[The[VerdictAgainstNSOisanEnormousVictoryforDigitalRightsandforVictimsofPegasusSpywareAroundtheWorld”[The[verdictagainstNSOisanenormousvictoryfordigitalrightsandforvictimsofPegasusspywarearoundtheworld”saidAccess now Senior Tech Legal Counsel, Natalkia Krapiva.
“Congratulations to meta for sticking with their lawsuit and holding nso to account. Similar legal actions. “
Michael de Dora, Us Policy and Advocacy Manager at Access Now, Added: “This verdict sends a clear message to spyware companies that targeting people through us-spoken platforms will com with a heig Price. It underscores the importance of us institutions the digital infrastructure and individuals that relay on it from unlawful surveillance. “
Carolyn Crandall, CMO at AirmdrA Supplier of AI-Enabled Managed Detection and Response (MDR) Services, Described a Defining Moment for Accountability in Cyber Security, But Said That The Ruling Open Up Potentally Dificy Questions for some organisations.
“By holding a spyware vendor liable for how its tools were used, the court have drawn a clear line between those who knowingly enable Ilicit Hacking and that thats Who Build Dual DUL DUL DUL DUL DUL DUL DUL DUL DUL Faith, “She said.
“But it also also rays an important question: where will courts draw that line next? Factors.
“In a shifting legal landscape, how such tools are governed, documed, and distributed will Increasing Plausible Deniability are fading, and vendors must get ahead of that curve, ”said Crandall.
Appeal possessible
In a statement shared with Courthouse newsNSO's Gil Lanier said the company maintained its stance that its technology plays a critical role in stopping serial crime and terrcer, and haven “Deployed replysibly”. He Claimed NSO's Technology Had Saved Many Lives, Including in the Us, and that this evidence has been excluded from the Jury's Consideration. The firm has indicated that it plans to appeal.
Meta said it had a long road ahead to collect the awarded damages from cash-strapped nso, but added that it does intent to do so. Ultimately, it said, it would like to make a significant donation to digital rights organisations Protection to at-Risk users.