Israeli entrepreneur describes how hackers ‘got everything’ from his iPhone
search

The latest Jewish News

Read this week’s digital edition

Click Here

Israeli entrepreneur describes how hackers ‘got everything’ from his iPhone

Anonymous source speaks of his device being compromised within minutes by a secretive firm

An iPhone
An iPhone

An Israeli entrepreneur has described how his iPhone was hacked within minutes by a secretive Israeli firm without him clicking on any links.

The anonymous source told technology news website Motherboard that NSO Group “got everything” during a recent demonstration, about which he was not authorised to discuss.

The firm’s Pegasus surveillance software is used by some states to snoop on mobile phones, including Android and iPhone devices, with journalists and human rights activists among those targeted.

The entrepreneur said he brought two iPhones along the meeting and put one with a foreign number on the table, giving the company his number only.

He said it took “five or seven minutes” for the the contents of his phone to appear on a large display that was set up in the meeting room, adding that the firm also accessed his microphone, camera and GPS location.

“I see clicking on all kinds of icons: email icon, SMS icon, and other icons,” he told Motherboard. “And suddenly I saw all my messages in there and I saw all the email in there and they were capable to open any information that was on my [iPhone].”

The company, which employs hundreds of engineers, sells its software to autocrats around the world, but was hoisted from the shadow in 2016 after a detailed investigation by Citizen Labs, which found that its products had been used against some of the world’s most prominent human rights campaigners.

NSO says its products are used to combat terrorism, child abduction and other serious crimes, adding that the software cannot be used in the United States.

Support your Jewish community. Support your Jewish News

Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.

For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.

Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.

You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.

100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...

Engaging

Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.

Celebrating

There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.

Pioneering

In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.

Campaigning

Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.

Easy access

In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.

Voice of our community to wider society

The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.

We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.

read more: