Polish Mayor’s Phone Hacked With Pegasus Spyware

Jacek Karnowski, the mayor of the Polish coastal town of Sopot, had his phone hacked in 2018-2019 using Pegasus spyware, Pegasus Project, a recent investigative journalism initiative recently found.

A local journalist reported on Friday, March 3, that Karnowski was collaborating on the opposition's Senate campaign at the time.

The Threat of Weaponized Spyware

Pegasus Project has been probing the software's use by governments, including Poland's. The software, created by the Israel-based NSO Group, has been alleged to be utilized to hack the phones of government critics.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International has forensically analyzed many mobile devices from activists and journalists worldwide. This research found widespread, persistent, and enduring unlawful surveillance and human rights abuses using NSO Group's Pegasus spyware.

Reuters tells us that Gazeta Wyborcza, a liberal daily critical of the ruling nationalist party Law and Justice (PiS), reported that Karnowski's name appeared on a list obtained as part of the investigation. The report has fueled claims that the country's special services used the technology against government critics.

"We will not allow the PiS machine to further destroy democracy, lead Poland to the East and sovietize our country," Karnowski wrote in a statement to Reuters. "The politicians who inspired and commissioned these activities belong in prison."

The PiS government has previously confirmed the purchase of sophisticated spyware but denied using it against political opponents.

Piotr Muller, a government spokesman, claimed that he was unaware of any actions taken by special services against specific individuals but that no laws had been broken.

More About Pegasus and Why It Is Flagged

Pegasus, a spyware software developed by the Israeli cybersecurity firm NSO Group, can be installed remotely without the targeted individual's interaction.

Scaringly, this will grant the NSO customers who control it access to text messages, photos, emails, videos, and contact lists. It can even record calls or activate a phone's microphone and cameras to create new recordings.

CNET reported that Apple itself had included a new Lockdown Mode in an iPhone software update, and the US Justice Department opened a criminal investigation into NSO Group because of the spyware.

Growing Concerns

There have been a lot of worries about the use of Pegasus, with concerns that it has been used to gather intelligence on activists, journalists, and politicians. As a result, Israel has received mounting pressure from governments and human rights organizations worldwide to investigate these allegations.

NSO has stated that it cannot confirm or deny any existing or potential Pegasus customers. It said that once sold to its governmental customers, it does not operate the system and is not involved in any way with its operation.

Human rights activists and opposition politicians in Poland have criticized the use of Pegasus, claiming it undermines democracy and free speech.

Karnowski's case is just one of several reported in recent years, implying that the government and others could use technology to target political opponents.