BANGKOK —
Dozens of
Thai democracy activists were targeted by the controversial Israeli
spyware known as Pegasus during the height of intense anti-government protests,
according to an international digital rights group report.
اضافة اعلان
Massive
demonstrations engulfed Thailand’s capital
Bangkok two years ago as thousands
called for greater civil freedoms, as well as a loosening of the strict
lese-majeste laws that prevent any criticism of the monarchy.
The report by
Canadian cybersecurity watchdog
Citizen Lab in partnership with Thai groups
iLaw and DigitalReach, identified some 30 activists, academics, lawyers, and
NGO workers — mostly connected to civil rights organizations — whose mobile
devices were affected.
“The infections
occurred from October 2020 to November 2021, coinciding with a period of
widespread pro-democracy protests, and predominantly targeted key figures in
the pro-democracy movement,” the report stated.
Pegasus software,
created by Israeli firm NSO Group, can extract data and activate cameras or
microphones once it has successfully infiltrated a mobile device.
The report stops
short of saying definitively who was behind the use of the spyware, though it
notes that NSO Group says they only sell the technology to governments.
In its own
executive summary of the findings the Thai NGO iLaw said: “It can be
circumstantially concluded that the use of Pegasus against dissidents would be
of significant benefit to the Thai government.”
Among those
targeted, Citizen Lab said, were the lese – majeste lawyer Arnon Nampa, protest
leader Panusaya Sithijirawattanakul and activist Jatupat Boonpattararaksa.
Panusaya is
currently on bail and facing 10 royal defamation charges, while Jatupat was
denied bail earlier this year after also being charged with insulting the
monarchy.
Those affected
were tipped off in November 2021 when Apple sent out a notification informing
them their devices had been targeted by state-backed attacks.
Amnesty
International, following an independent investigation, condemned the hacking.
“These new
revelations are a shocking example of just how low authorities might stoop to
control peaceful dissent,” said technologist Etienne Maynier.
“It is worth
remembering that this is only what has been found so far, and the scale of
surveillance attempts could be bigger and more damaging.”
It is the latest
such case of the Israeli software being used to surveil dissidents.
The NSO Group is
currently being sued in the US by Apple, which alleges the firm’s spyware was
used to infiltrate a number of iPhones worldwide.
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