US blacklisting makes waves

The Commerce Department’s decision to blacklist Israeli company NSO Group made waves on Wednesday across the spyware industry, placing a spotlight on firms profiting off foreign governments surveilling dissidents.

NSO Group is a key provider of the spyware foreign governments have used for years to go after journalists, academics and others raising concerns about regimes, and marks a turning point in the nation’s approach to human rights in cyberspace.

“This sends a really powerful signal,” James Lewis, senior vice president and director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Strategic Technology Program, told The Hill. “This is not going to go away, because there is too much demand for it…but it sends a powerful message.”

NSO Group was added to the Commerce Department’s “entity list” Wednesday along with Israeli group Candiru, Russian group Positive Technologies and Singapore’s Computer Security Initiative Consultancy, over concerns around their involvement in malicious cyber activity.

The NSO Group has become a poster child in recent years for increasing concerns around cyber surveillance. The company’s Pegasus spyware is able to hack phones to steal information, turn on cameras, record calls, and other activities, often without the user knowing.