Investigation Shows Israeli Malware Firms Pitching Spyware To Embargoed Countries, Serial Human Rights Abusers
from the never-even-bothering-to-ask,-are-we-the-baddies? dept
As we’re all painfully aware by now, former Israeli intelligence analysts are capable of producing private sector malware companies faster than the CIA can produce successful coups.
While both are capable of handing over inordinate amounts of power to truly terrible people, only the Israeli companies have been formally asked by the US federal government to knock it the fuck off.
The sanctions handed down by the US Commerce Department were the direct results of months of negative press detailing the endless abuse of Israel-based NSO Group’s malware by the abusive governments it chose to sell to, including several countries listed in the world yearbook as Most Likely To Want Israel Dead.
NSO and Cytrox — companies that both have extensive sordid histories — were sanctioned. NSO, despite being best buddies with the Israeli government, found itself being investigated by the same government that had aided and abetted its malware sales to international death merchants, resulting in the extremely belated trimming of “Acceptable Customers” list.
While both are capable of handing over inordinate amounts of power to truly terrible people, only the Israeli companies have been formally asked by the US federal government to knock it the fuck off.
The sanctions handed down by the US Commerce Department were the direct results of months of negative press detailing the endless abuse of Israel-based NSO Group’s malware by the abusive governments it chose to sell to, including several countries listed in the world yearbook as Most Likely To Want Israel Dead.
NSO and Cytrox — companies that both have extensive sordid histories — were sanctioned. NSO, despite being best buddies with the Israeli government, found itself being investigated by the same government that had aided and abetted its malware sales to international death merchants, resulting in the extremely belated trimming of “Acceptable Customers” list.
- The negative press has failed to subside. But not all of it is NSO-focused. Plenty of other Israeli companies founded by ex-Israeli intelligence analysts have similarly chosen to sell spyware to the worst governments on earth, resulting in the sort of worldwide press that’s normally the result of press junkets by confirmed misanthropes. . ."
READ MORE >> Thu, Oct 12th 2023 04:13pm - Tim Cushing in Techdirt
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