UAE Allegedly Used ‘Pegasus’ to Hack UK PM’s Office

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Cyberspace is often divided into two layers: a defensive layer and an offensive layer. However, because all of us are interconnected through the network, leaving traces of our activities, the industry also produces sophisticated tracking and information gathering capabilities. The NSO’s Pegasus spyware has been accused in recent years of being used for various purposes, and now a fresh report indicates that the software has been installed on the network of the British Prime Minister’s Office for surveillance purposes, in what is claimed to be an activity involved with the United Arab Emirates.

Citizen Lab, the Canadian organization dedicated to exposing hackers and digital threats against civilians, has published a report confirming that in the years 2020-2021, suspicious activity related to Pegasus software was observed and reported across UK government networks, including networks connected to the Prime Minister and the Foreign Office.

Cyber professionals claim that Pegasus users associated with UAE, India, Cyprus, and Jordan are responsible for suspicious activity on the Foreign Office network, and UAE operators are responsible for suspicious activity on the Prime Minister’s Office network.

Due to the increase in government use of spyware against citizens, legislation and regulatory efforts are now being undertaken in the UK regarding cyber policy issues as well as compensation for spyware victims. In turn, these may affect the cyber industry that produces these technologies, which serve also the defense industry, but may also raise human rights issues, according to citizenlab.ca.