The revelation was made by the University of Torontos Citizen Lab after human rights activist Ahmed Mansoor sent them a suspicious linkwhich had been sent to him via a text message.
The link claimed to contain new secrets about detainees being tortured in UAE prisons.
We recognized the links as belonging to an exploit infrastructure connected to NSO Group, an Israel-based cyber war company that sells Pegasus, a government-exclusive lawful intercept spyware product, said Citizen Lab in a statement.
Once infected, Mansoors phone would have become a digital spy in his pocket, capable of employing his iPhones camera and microphone to snoop on activity in the vicinity of the device, recording his WhatsApp and Viber calls, logging messages sent in mobile chat apps, and tracking his movements, it added.
The lab -- which focuses on advanced research and development at the intersection of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), human rights, and global security -- said that the UAE government was the likely operator behind the targeting,and noted that the attack was traced back to software designed by Israels NSO Group, which writes and sells spyware to clients, including foreign governments.
The NSO, which is reportedly run by former members of the Israeli armys Unit 8200 electronic surveillance branch, refrained from commenting whether it had sold the software to Abu Dhabi as they cannot confirm the specific cases.
The agreements signed with the companys customers require that the companys products only be used in a lawful manner. Specifically, the products may only be used for the prevention and investigation of crimes, said NSO spokesman Zamir Dahbash.
The discovery prompted Apple to release an urgent software update aimed at blocking the exploitation used by the spyware.
Mansoor, a prominent and internationally recognized human rights activist, has been arrested and tortured in the past and has also been the target of sophisticated malware written by a private intelligence firm.
The targeting of these activists and dissidents is a taste of whats to come, Citizen Lab researcher Bill Marczak. What theyre facing today will be faced by ordinary users tomorrow, he added.
By Press TV
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