U.S. Jury Orders Israeli Spyware Maker NSO Group to Pay $167 Million Over WhatsApp Hack
California (Quds News Network)- A U.S. federal jury on Tuesday ordered Israeli spyware company NSO Group to pay $167 million in punitive damages for hacking WhatsApp users, reported the Washington Post. The verdict followed six years of legal battles and marked the largest penalty ever imposed on a spyware firm.
The jury reached its decision in Oakland, California, after two days of deliberation. The court also awarded $440,000 in compensatory damages to WhatsApp’s parent company, Meta.
Judge Phyllis Hamilton had already ruled in December that NSO violated the U.S. Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and a similar California law. NSO used its infamous Pegasus spyware to target about 1,400 people via WhatsApp. Victims included journalists, human rights activists, government officials, and dissidents across dozens of countries.
NSO sent malicious software through WhatsApp’s servers to hijack victims’ phones. In her ruling, Judge Hamilton said NSO was liable for hacking Meta’s systems. She also sanctioned the company for refusing to share its source code during the trial.
Meta said its employees spent over $400,000 in salaries fighting NSO’s cyberattacks. The spyware giant is expected to appeal the verdict, especially the record-breaking punitive damages.
Pegasus spyware can exploit devices without user interaction. It captures encrypted messages, emails, photos, and more—without leaving a trace. Court evidence revealed NSO ran a dedicated team of 140 researchers focused on exploiting iPhones, Android phones, and popular apps.
NSO claimed that it sells Pegasus only to governments and does not control how targets are chosen. However, testimony from its own executives showed the company played a key role in deciding how the hacks were executed, depending on the phone and operating system used.
Between 2018 and 2020, NSO launched repeated attacks on WhatsApp, changing tactics whenever the platform blocked them. One key update came after Meta filed its lawsuit, bolstering claims that NSO acted intentionally and maliciously.
NSO’s CEO Yaron Shohat testified that the company lost $12 million in 2024 and $9 million in 2023, claiming it could not handle major financial penalties.
The case featured the first U.S. courtroom testimony from NSO executives, who have long avoided public scrutiny. It also marks a historic moment in the fight over global spyware use and digital rights.
The U.S. government has already sanctioned NSO for acting against national interests. Apple dropped a similar lawsuit last year after Israeli officials reportedly seized NSO’s source code.
NSO Group was founded and is operated by individuals with backgrounds in Israeli military intelligence. The company’s research and development team is predominantly composed of former Israeli military intelligence personnel, many of whom served in Unit 8200, Israel’s elite cyber intelligence unit.
