From sophisticated spyware attacks to mass phishing via smartphones and the rise of facial recognition technology, the range and reach of surveillance threats to human rights defenders is growing. “When cyber-attackers see people are switching to using (messaging app) Signal, for example, then they will try to target Signal. Raoof says one of the main focuses for 2020 will be tackling customised targeting of smartphones, which hit headlines in 2019. Last October, messaging app WhatsApp, owned by Facebook, launched a high-profile case against surveillance company NSO Group for spyware attacks on more than a thousand of its users. The activists are seeking to force Israel’s defence ministry to revoke the export licence of NSO, whose products have been used to target activists globally.

Source: The Star January 18, 2020 00:00 UTC