Bloomberg: Israeli NSO considers shutting Pegasus spying unit
Occupied Palestine (QNN)- Israel’s NSO Group, the manufacturer of the notorious Pegasus spyware, is exploring options that include shutting its Pegasus unit and selling the entire company in fear of defaulting on its debts, reported Bloomberg citing people familiar with the matter.
According to Bloomberg’s source, talks have been held with several investment funds about moves that include a refinancing or outright sale.
“The prospective new owners include two American funds that have discussed taking control and closing Pegasus”, according to the report. Under that scenario, the funds would inject about $200 million in fresh capital to turn the know-how behind Pegasus into strictly military cyber security services and perhaps develop the Israeli company’s drone technology.
In November, the US added NSO Group to a list of entities banned from receiving exports from American companies, citing its role in developing and supplying spyware and hacking tools.
Last month, Apple Inc said it has filed a lawsuit against Israel’s cyber firm NSO Group and its parent company OSY Technologies for the surveillance and targeting of Apple users with its Pegasus spyware.
Recent reports have also revealed that the spyware has been detected on devices of Palestinian human rights workers, whose organizations were designated as terrorist groups by the occupation state. NSO insists its product is meant only to assist countries in fighting crime and terrorism.
Several investigations also revealed that the Israeli company is involved in assaults against journalists, politicians, and human rights activists around the world, some of them were killed.
