Meta accuses NSO Group of violating court order by WhatsApp spear phishing

Meta has accused NSO Group of continuing to target its WhatsApp communications app despite widespread publicity and official and legal sanctions against the spyware vendor.

WhatsApp said it caught and disrupted spear phishing attacks that it linked to NSO Group.

It has applied to court for the spyware vendor to be held in contempt for breaching an injunction barring the spyware vendor from targeting the communications app.

Meta did not say how many WhatsApp users had been attacked, but said the incidents involved social engineering attempts where people were tricked to click on links taking them to malicious websites.

NSO Group also allegedly created test accounts and groups on WhatsApp, which Meta said had been taking down.

In early May, Meta celebrated a jury decision to force NSO Group to pay damages for attacking users of WhatsApp and other platforms with the Pegasus spyware that is capable of compromising Apple iOS and Google Android devices.

The damages were originally set to US$167 million ($237 million) but later reduced to US$4 million ($5.7 million).

NSO Group was sanctioned by the United States in 2021, along with Israeli spyware vendor Candiru, Russia's Positive Technologies and Singapore-based Computer Security Initiative Consultancy.

The same year, Apple sued NSO Group for targeting its users with spyware.

Last year, NSO Group was acquired by a group of American investors, fronted by Hollywood movie producer Robert Simonds, taking it out of Israeli ownership.