Saudi Arabia Denies Allegations Of Using Spyware To Track Communications

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia denies using spyware to track communications. (Unsplash/Mika Baumeister)

JAKARTA - Saudi Arabian officials have denied reports in various media that the kingdom uses spyware to track communications, in a state television broadcast on Wednesday, July 22 local time.

"This claim is baseless. The kingdom does not approve of such a practice," state TV quoted the official as saying, without giving his name.

A global investigation published on Sunday by 17 media organizations said the Pegasus spyware, licensed by Israel-based NSO Group, had been used in an attempt to successfully hack smartphones belonging to journalists, government officials, and human rights activists.

The Pegasus spyware project being sold by NSO is said to have been identified on the phones of individuals targeted by the governments of Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Mexico, Morocco, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Hungary, India, United Arab Emirates, and many more.

The Washington Post said the Pegasus spyware was also used to target the phones of two women close to Jamal Khashoggi, a Post columnist who was murdered in the Saudi consulate in Turkey in 2018, before and after his death.

NSO issued a statement on Sunday rejecting the reporting by media partners, saying it was riddled with false assumptions and unfounded theories. NSO said its products were intended only for use by government intelligence and law enforcement agencies to combat terrorism and crime.

Separately, Israel's Defense Ministry is studying an investigation into this, Defense Minister Benny Gantz said. He said Israel's policy of exporting cyber products to foreign governments is aimed at lawful use, exclusively for preventing and investigating crimes and terrorism.

"We are aware of recent publications regarding the use of systems developed by certain Israeli cyber companies," Gantz said Tuesday during a 'Cyber ​​Week' event at Tel Aviv University, citing The Jerusalem Post Wednesday, July 21.

Gantz also underlined that Israel strictly controls the export of these products, and follows international export control provisions that apply globally.

"Countries that acquire this system must comply with their commitments to these requirements. We are currently studying published information on this matter," Gantz stressed.

Last February, a United States (US) intelligence report released on February 26 said Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved an operation to arrest or kill journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed in 2018.

"We assess that Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved the operation in Istanbul, Turkey to arrest or kill Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi," the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence said in the four-page report.