Italy

Apple fixes new iPhone zero-day bug used in Paragon spyware hacks

Researchers revealed on Thursday that two European journalists had their iPhones hacked with spyware made by Paragon. Apple now says it has fixed the bug that was used to hack their phones. Citizen Lab wrote in its report, shared with TechCrunch ahead of its publication, that Apple had told its researchers that the flaw exploited […]

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Researchers confirm two journalists were hacked with Paragon spyware

Two European journalists were hacked using government spyware made by Israeli surveillance tech provider Paragon, new research has confirmed.  On Thursday, digital rights group The Citizen Lab published a new report detailing the results of a new forensic investigation into the iPhones of Italian journalist Ciro Pellegrino and an unnamed “prominent” European journalist. The researchers

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Paragon says it canceled contracts with Italy over government’s refusal to investigate spyware attack on journalist

Spyware maker Paragon accused the Italian government of refusing its help in investigating whether a journalist was spied on with its technology, according to a statement on Monday.  In the statement first reported by Haaretz, Paragon claimed it was this refusal that prompted the company to cut ties with its Italian government customers.  “The company

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Italian lawmakers say Italy used spyware to target phones of immigration activists, but not against journalist

An Italian parliamentary committee confirmed that the Italian government used spyware made by the Israeli company Paragon to hack several activists working to save immigrants at sea. The committee, however, said its investigation concluded that a prominent Italian journalist was not among the victims, leaving key questions about the spyware attacks unanswered.   The Parliamentary Committee

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Researchers name several countries as potential Paragon spyware customers

The governments of Australia, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Israel, and Singapore are likely customers of Israeli spyware maker Paragon Solutions, according to a new technical report by a renowned digital security lab. On Wednesday, The Citizen Lab, a group of academics and security researchers housed at the University of Toronto that has investigated the spyware industry

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Vento rolls out new €75M fund for Italian founders, no matter where they live

Over the last 15 years or so, as European venture capital shifted into a higher gear, one way to help a nation’s ecosystem flourish was to invest in founders from that country, regardless of where they were based. This would help re-patriate the entrepreneurial mindset back home. In Europe, the approach was pioneered in part

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Spyware maker caught distributing malicious Android apps for years

Italian spyware maker SIO, known to sell its products to government customers, is behind a series of malicious Android apps that masquerade as WhatsApp and other popular apps but steal private data from a target’s device, TechCrunch has exclusively learned. Late last year, a security researcher shared three Android apps with TechCrunch, claiming they were

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Another person targeted by Paragon spyware comes forward

Another person who was allegedly targeted on WhatsApp with spyware made by Israeli company Paragon has come forward. Beppe Caccio, one of the co-founders of Mediterranea Saving Humans, an Italian non-government organization that helps immigrants, told TechCrunch that he had been targeted by the spyware campaign.  Caccio disclosed he was targeted after another one of

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Spyware maker Paragon terminates contract with Italian government: media reports

Paragon Solutions, a startup that sells access to surveillance technologies including phone spyware, has cut ties with the Italian government, according to reports in The Guardian and Haaretz. On Thursday, citing an anonymous source, The Guardian reported Paragon had first suspended its contract with Italy on Friday after WhatsApp said it had disrupted a hacking

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Paragon spyware used to target citizens across Europe, says Italian government

The Italian government said in a press release on Wednesday that a spyware campaign revealed by WhatsApp, and carried out with spyware made by Paragon Solutions, targeted people across several countries in Europe.  The government, led by far-right prime minister Giorgia Meloni, denied being behind the targeting of Italian citizens Francesco Cancellato, a journalist who

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