WhatsApp Court Docs Reveal NSO Cut 10 Spyware Clients Over Abuse
Newly unsealed court documents show that NSO Group disconnects 10 government customers for abusing its Pegasus spyware. The files also reveal internal hacking tools and the massive scale of WhatsApp user targeting.
A U.S. federal judge publicly releases three court documents that reveal new details about NSO Group's Pegasus spyware following a legal victory by WhatsApp. The unsealed files include depositions from NSO employees, internal company records, and ironically, WhatsApp messages between NSO staff that WhatsApp obtains via subpoena. These disclosures show that NSO cuts off 10 government customers in recent years for abusing the spyware service.
The court documents expose a suite of hacking tools named "Hummingbird," which includes specific exploits called "Eden" and "Heaven." Government clients pay up to $6.8 million for a one-year license to use these tools, generating at least $31 million in revenue for NSO in 2019 alone. According to the head of research and development at NSO, these hacking tools successfully install Pegasus on between hundreds and tens of thousands of target devices.
This evidence emerges from a lawsuit WhatsApp files in 2019 that accuses NSO of violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and breaching terms of service. The legal battle centers on cyberattacks against WhatsApp users, specifically targeting journalists, dissidents, and human rights advocates. A WhatsApp spokesperson states that this evidence clearly shows how NSO violates U.S. law and attacks civil society, vowing to continue holding the company accountable.