The UK and France have recently rallied around for tighter regulatory of commercial spyware following the Pegasus scandal in 2021.
According to Security Week, the recent joint initiative by France and the UK, announced at the Peace Forum in Paris, underscores a growing international concern over the unregulated development and use of commercial surveillance software.
This move comes in the wake of high-profile spyware scandals involving Pegasus and Predator. A French official highlighted the legitimate uses of such spyware but warned of the ease with which it could be manipulated for malicious purposes. Emphasizing the risks to cyberspace security, stability, and human rights, the official also pointed out the dangers of an unregulated market leading to widespread proliferation of these technologies.
Last month, Amnesty International reported that Vietnamese agents might be linked to a global spyware campaign, targeting officials, civil society, and journalists, using the EU-made Predator software. Similar to the Israeli NSO’s Pegasus spyware, which caused global outrage, Predator can hijack the camera and microphone of infected phones. Mediapart and Spiegel magazine’s joint investigation revealed that Predator had been sold to several governments, raising significant concerns about privacy and surveillance.
In 2021, a media consortium exposed the use of Pegasus software in spying on politicians, journalists, human rights activists, and business leaders globally. This revelation has intensified the debate on the need for stringent regulation of commercial spyware.
“The unregulated use poses a problem in terms of the security and stability of cyberspace, but also in terms of respect for human rights,” a French official said. “An unregulated market also poses the risk of proliferation. This therefore becomes a regulatory issue for us at diplomatic level.”
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