Saudi Arabia tried Negotiating Purchase of Cell-Phone Spyware from Israel

As per Haaretz daily's reporting, there has been an alleged negotiation by Saudi Arabia for the purchase of a sophisticated system, which aids in hacking mobile phones, from some company in Israel. The newspaper reported that 2 individuals representing NSO Group Technologies based in Herzliya met officers from Saudi Arabia during 2017 in Vienna for the promotion of software named Pegasus 3. Pegasus 3 is a spyware for eavesdropping on cell-phones requiring simply one phone number for trapping any such device. The said officers were Prince Turki al-Faisal erstwhile intelligence chief, and present intelligence chief's deputy Nasser al-Qahtani.

At the time of the meeting, individuals representing NSO seemed to have displayed one PowerPoint presentation to delineate capabilities of the sophisticated online weapon. Knowledge about the issue occurred through a complaint from somebody registering it with Israeli cops, the individual known to be one businessman from Europe who had
ties with the Gulf. Middleeastmonitor.com posted this, November 25, 2018.

It seems that the businessman was the first source establishing connection between the parties from Saudi Arabia and Israel; however, at that time he was stopped from continuing the negotiation. The stated deal for sale of the spyware to SA happened when an intense scrutiny was taking place of thwarting dissidents in Saudi Arabia soon
after Mohammad bin Salman the Crown Prince elevated in power last year's June. Evidently, of late, Edward Snowden the whistleblower blamed NSO stating the company sold spying software to Riyadh towards helping the latter trace whereabouts of Jamal Khashoggi although the company overruled the accusation.

Independent experts have pinpointed the Pegasus software of NSO as possibly getting utilized within several countries suffering from lack of human rights conditions. The software's intention was providing access to mobile phones remotely through an e-mail link infested with Trojan horse. It was during late August that Pegasus got revealed following Apple's update of iPhone software the company owns following an activist of human rights inside UAE becoming victim of the spyware. But NSO claims its software is for the exclusive use in investigations as well as prevention of terrorism/crime as also for investigation of the policy's infringements.

» SPAMfighter News - 11/27/2018