WhatsApp parent company Meta has said that Israeli spyware firm Paragon Solutions has targeted approximately 90 of its users, including journalists and members of civil society organisations. The company claims that it has successfully disrupted the hacking operation.
A WhatsApp official told news agency Reuters that the company has issued a cease-and-desist letter to Paragon following the discovery of the hacking attempt. The official disclosed that the company detected an effort to compromise roughly 90 user accounts on its platform, however, declined to provide specific details about the targeted individuals or their locations.
The official also confirmed that the victims included an unspecified number of people involved in civil society work and media.
The WhatsApp official refrained from elaborating on the methods used to attribute the hack to Paragon, stating only that law enforcement agencies and industry partners have been notified.
What WhatsApp has to say
The official stated that WhatsApp has successfully disrupted the hacking operation and is now working with the Canadian internet watchdog group Citizen Lab to provide support to the affected users.
“WhatsApp is committed to protecting the privacy and security of our users,” the company stated.
“We will continue to protect people’s ability to communicate privately,” it added.
John Scott-Railton, a researcher at Citizen Lab, commented on the discovery of the Paragon spyware targeting WhatsApp users.
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