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US intelligence community accused of buying spyware technology from Israeli tech firm NSO Group this can spy on almost anyone through their smartphone.

The alleged supply of the technology preceded the lawsuit. Biden management blacklisted the tech last year.

NSO GroupAccording to the Pegasus Project organized by the Forbidden Stories news agency, Pegasus’ product provides access to the smartphone user’s messages, camera and microphone without any intervention from the victim. Pegasus has caught the attention of surveillance-oriented watchdogs and governments interested in being users.

According to a report from The New York Times, in 2019 the FBI acquired the technology but did not use it.

The FBI told the Washington Times that the technology has no operational use to support any investigation and provides a limited license for “product testing and evaluation only.”

“The FBI is diligently working to stay aware of emerging technologies and commercial vehicles – not only to explore potential legal uses, but also to fight crime and protect both the American people and our civil liberties,” the FBI said in a statement. “This means that we routinely identify, evaluate and test technical solutions and issues for a variety of reasons, including potential operational and security concerns where they could fall into the wrong hands.”

Details on the relationship of American law enforcement and national security agencies with the United States NSO Group has been blurred. According to the report, the CIA arranged and paid Djibouti to purchase the Pegasus product to assist its counterterrorism efforts. The CIA declined to comment.

This NSO Group It has faced a publicity nightmare in recent years as watchdogs and investigators uncover how spyware technologies are being used. Toronto-based research group Citizen Lab claimed in 2018 that Pegasus spyware technology was used in operations in 45 countries.

Last September, Citizen Lab released a report. NSO Group The exploit affecting Apple devices, and Apple later released a security update.

This Biden management wanted to blacklist NSO Group It will be added to the Commerce Department’s “Entity List” in November 2021, detailing foreign individuals and organizations facing business restrictions due to national security concerns.

This NSO Group He did not respond to a request for comment on Friday.

A NSO The spokesperson previously stated that the firm would advocate reversing the blacklisting decision and that “our technologies support US national security interests and policies by preventing terrorism and crime.”