Israeli spyware used to hack across 10 countries – Microsoft

A Microsoft research has showed on Tuesday that an Israeli firm’s hacking tools have used against journalists, opposition figures, and advocacy organisations across at least 10 countries.

According to another report by Citizen Lab, the entity has been able to identify various civil society victims whose iPhones were hacked using a surveillance software by an Israeli company called QuaDream Ltd.

The company is a lower profile competitor to the Israeli spyware company NSO Group, which has been blacklisted by the US government for abuse allegations.

Microsoft Associate General Counsel Amy Hogan-Burney said in a statement that hacking groups like QuaDream “thrive in the shadows” and that blacklisting them is essential to stop their activity.

The reports came along with an announced crackdown on the international spyware industry by U.S. President Joe Biden. As well as a crack in the US-Israel relations due to the ongoing demonstrations for the lack of democracy is Israel.