‘Israel’ uses Coronavirus to spy on Palestinians’ phones

The COGAT asked Palestinian workers to download a spying app on their cell phones.

Occupied Palestine (QNN)- Israeli Haaretz reported that the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) asked thousands of Palestinian workers to download an application that allows the Israeli army to hack their phones.

The COGAT request for Palestinians working in the occupied land was under the pretext of using the app to check on their permissions instead of visiting the office. The Israelis claimed that it aimed at preventing the spread of the coronavirus.

The newspaper added that the app, named ‘The Coordinator’, grants the Israeli army access to private files and to the camera in the targeted phones. It also allows the Israelis to know the location of the targeted phones.

A message appears as soon as the app is downloaded, which states that the COGAT can use any information collected from the targeted phone for several targets, including ‘security targets’. The app also asks its users to agree on providing information that will be used by the occupation state when needed.

The head of Sada Social Center, Iyad Rifa’i, told QNN that the occupation state is imposing a stranglehold on social media under several pretexts, including the novel coronavirus.

Rifa’i added that the Israeli practice is deemed as a violation against the users’ privacy and hacking for their data, exploiting their humanitarian needs amid the coronavirus crisis, which violates the digital and human rights.

He also warned Palestinians from downloading the app or any other applications that would violate their privacy and personal information.

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