US court bars Israeli spyware firm from targeting WhatsApp users – Al Jazeera

The judge ruled NSO caused ‘irreparable harm’ to Meta, but said an earlier award of $168m in damages was ‘excessive’. A United States judge has granted an injunction barring Israeli spyware maker the NSO Group from targeting WhatsApp users, saying the firm’s software causes “direct harm” but slashed an earlier damages award of $168m to just $4m. In a ruling on Friday granting WhatsApp owner Meta an injunction to stop NSO’s spyware from being used in the messaging service, district judge Phyllis Hamilton said the Israeli firm’s “conduct causes irreparable harm”, adding that there was “no dispute that the conduct is ongoing”. Recommended Stories list of 3 items list 1 of 3 Italy cuts ties with Israeli spyware firm Paragon amid surveillance scandal list 2 of 3 AI is fuelling a new wave of border vigilantism in the US list 3 of 3 Why has Microsoft cut Israel off from some of its services? end of list Hamilton said NSO’s conduct “serves to defeat” one of the key purposes of the service offered by WhatsApp: privacy. “Part of what companies such as WhatsApp are ‘selling’ is informational privacy, and any unauthorised access is an interference with that sale,” she said.
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