Kathmandu. On Sunday night, the Washington Post and India's The Wire reported on Pegasus software designed to monitor people around the world. The report states that Pegasus hacked the phones of many journalists and social workers around the world. As mentioned in the news, details of 50,000 phone numbers have been leaked. According to Indian media, 300 of them have Indian numbers.
According to the report, the device was hacked by Pegasus, members of the Saudi royal family, more than 600 politicians or government employees from around the world, 64 business officials, 189 journalists, and 85 human rights activists.
However, the software company NSO has denied all the allegations. The company claims to be selling the program to only a few companies conducting research.
According to media reports, the phones of journalists and many other people in India have also been hacked and monitored through Israeli-made software.
This software can be used to monitor a person's activities by hacking their phone. The software is installed on the target person's phone and then the remote control of his phone is taken.
The software company NSO was founded in 2009. The Israeli company has been developing high-level monitoring software. Many countries around the world have bought the company's tools.
The company claims that NSO only gives its software to the government and government agencies. According to the company, 51 percent of those using the software are government intelligence agencies, 38 percent are law enforcement agencies and 11 percent are the military.
This app is designed with terrorism in mind. Colonel Gabi Siboni, a cybersecurity expert at The Institute for National Security Studies in Jerusalem, said: The Israeli government could take action if this proves to be true.
Who can hack?
According to NSO, the company only sells this software. The company has no control over the use after the sale. The company also said that it does not have the details collected by the user agency.
"It's a complex technique, it's used only after training," says Saboni. Most likely NSO will train government agents to buy its software.
Is it a tool designed to monitor the public?
According to the NSO, this is not a tool designed to monitor large numbers of people. This is a tool designed to monitor certain people. Through this, people suspected of being involved in criminal activities are monitored.
With this software, a person's phone can be taken under control and the agency gets the details related to it. Cybersecurity experts say that phone calls, phone cameras, microphones, emails can also be used.
How is it hacked?
According to cybersecurity experts, the device is usually hacked by sending a corrupt message file to the target person. Harrell Minashree, head of the cyber department at the Holon Institute of Technology, says: 'There is not much information about this software. However, it can be said that the device can be hacked just like other tools. Its method may be more advanced than other tools. Hackers have discovered some weaknesses. '
