The Pegasus spyware is a system designed to invigilate the users’ activities via smartphones and mobile devices. Currently, due to increasing tensions regarding unfair use of the system, the security and data protection of citizens have been challenged.
Among the Pegasus data leakage scandal in Poland recently and the Pegasus Project
Investigation, doubts have been raised in regard to the rightfulness of governments to control and invigilate its citizens. The use of the spyware on political opponents in Poland or journalists in countries such as France, Spain or Hungary result in strong repulse from parties involved.
According to NSO Group, the company behind the development of the spyware system, officially it is only sold to governments and to fight against terrorism or internal crimes against the state. Nonetheless, the members of the political parties in states around the globe, journalists and activists have been victims of attacks on their privacy. The Washington Post has conducted research where over 50000 names appeared on a list of potential victims, including lawyers, teachers, politicians and more. Further, 10 prime ministers, 3 presidents and a King appearing on that list elevate the issue even more, resulting in people actively in power vulnerable to being spied on.
Recently, the most up-to-date and crucial instance was the confirmation of usage of Pegasus on the opposition leaders in Poland in 2019 by the ruling party. The most prominent victim has been the Polish senator Krzysztof Brejza, affiliated with the opposing party, the Civic Platform (PO). Furthermore, Brejza acted as a campaign head for the opposition party, which could have potentially lead to a change in the voting procedure of the electorate. The ruling party, Law and Justice (PiS), has agreed to the usage of Pegasus, however not in any way, shape or form on the opposition leaders, actively refuting the accusations of election fraud.
Such “Polish Watergate” scandal has only been fueled by the comments from the victim himself, Brejza, who openly stated that such behavior from the ruling party deprived the country and its citizens of fair and just elections. Mateusz Morawiecki, the Polish Prime minister, has called the source of such news, the Citizen Lab-AP “fake news” and insinuated that there was a possibility of an outside engagement, such as an action from the foreign service of another country. Such statements, however, bear little to no real value as it is unlikely any other party should wish to be involved or even risk being involved in a clearly domestic debacle between the opposing parties. The senior researcher from Citizen Lab-AP, John-Scott Railton, clearly shares such an opinion, as he believes any outside intervention from a foreign service would be extremely dangerous if not investigated and such lack of examination from the ruling party is rather worrying.
Nonetheless, such threat should by no means be downplayed and the seriousness of privacy and most importantly, security, should not be skipped. Poland has been the mosr recent example of privacy security breaches and most probably most prominent in recent times, yet scandals such as Watergate tell us that despite such lengthy period of time passing, not much is being changed in regard to our own privacy. With the potential to influence the political path of various states and further the international security, policymakers should bear in mind the safety of the public first. The idea of the governments tracking the society’s every move and collecting data that may potentially be used against anyone in the future without valid reasoning behind is truly baffling, hence the need for better legislature on say topic is to be considered a pressing issue.
Reference list:
‘Polish Watergate’: Tensions grow as Polish government pushed to investigate spyware claims. Euronews, published on 06/01/22. Available at: https://www.euronews.com/2022/01/05/polish-watergate-tensions-grow-as-polish-government-pushed-to-investigate-spyware-claims
Amnesty International verifies Polish senator was hacked with Pegasus spyware. PBS, published on 06/01/22. Available at: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/amnesty-international-verifies-polish-senator-was-hacked-with-pegasus-spyware
Report: Polish government ‘used Pegasus spyware’. EUobserver, published on 06/01/22. Available at: https://euobserver.com/tickers/154012
Kazakh Activists’ Phones Infected With Pegasus Spyware. The Diplomat, published on 10/12/21. Available at: https://thediplomat.com/2021/12/kazakh-activists-phones-infected-with-pegasus-spyware/
What is Pegasus spyware and how does it hack phones? The Guardian, published on 18/07/21. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/news/2021/jul/18/what-is-pegasus-spyware-and-how-does-it-hack-phones
Kaczynski says Pegasus spyware was not used against opposition. The First News, published on 07/01/21. Available at: https://www.thefirstnews.com/article/kaczynski-says-pegasus-spyware-was-not-used-against-opposition-27107
Pegasus spyware on State Department phones: What you need to know. CNET, published on 03/12/21. Available at: https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/pegasus-spyware-on-state-department-phones-what-you-need-to-know/
By The European Institute for International Law and International Relations.
