WhatsApp wins historic victory in the long-running case against NSO Group
WhatsApp said that the malware targeted more than 100 human rights defenders, journalists, and “other members of civil society” as well as government officials and diplomats. WhatsApp said that more than 100 human rights defenders, journalists and “other members of civil society” were targeted by the malware, along with government officials and diplomats.
In her ruling, Judge Phyllis Hamilton said NSO did not dispute that it “must have reverse-engineered and/or decompiled the WhatsApp software” to install its Pegasus spyware on devices, but raised questions about whether it had done so before agreeing to WhatsApp’s terms of service.
However, the judge said “common sense dictates that
must have first gained access” to WhatsApp, pointing out that NSO had offered “no plausible explanation” for how it could have done so without agreeing to the terms of service.
Hamilton noted NSO had repeatedly failed to produce relevant discovery, including the Pegasus source code, despite a court order requiring that it be turned over. She said NSO also refused to produce internal communications, including communications about WhatsApp vulnerabilities.
“NSO’s lack of compliance with discovery orders raises serious concerns about their transparency and willingness to cooperate with the judicial process,” the judge said.[NSO]In a statement given to TechCrunch, Meta spokesperson Emily Westcott said WhatsApp welcomes Friday’s ruling.
“NSO can no longer avoid accountability for their unlawful attacks on WhatsApp, journalists, human rights activists, and civil society,” she said. In a statement to TechCrunch, Meta spokesperson Emily Westcott said WhatsApp welcomes Friday’s ruling.
“NSO can no longer avoid accountability for their unlawful attacks on WhatsApp, journalists and civil society,” she said. We are proud of our stand against NSO, and grateful to all the organizations who supported this case. WhatsApp will never stop working to protect people’s private communication.”
Will Cathcart, the head of WhatsApp, described the ruling as a “huge win for privacy” in a post on X.
NSO spokesperson Gil Lainer declined to comment. NSO previously claimed that Pegasus helped law enforcement agencies and intelligence agencies combat crime and protect national safety.
