A piece of spyware developed by Israel-based company Paragon Solutions allegedly targeted nearly one hundred journalists and members of civil society using WhatsApp, said the messaging app on 31 January. In response to a surge in spying on reporters in recent years, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is leading a global campaign to counter surveillance on journalists and the media. The work is part of a global project that began in October 2024, which is being carried out by a global consortium led by the BBC Media Action and funded by the European Commission. The IFJ asks journalists who have been notified by WhatsApp that their devices were breached to contact [email protected] in confidence.
“WhatsApp has disrupted a spyware campaign by Paragon that targeted a number of users including journalists and members of civil society. We’ve reached out directly to people who we believe were affected […],” a company spokesperson told The Guardian. NBC News reported that the attack targeted users “across over two dozen countries, including Europe”.
Paragon Solutions’ spyware, known as Graphite, is used by government clients, as is the case with other cyberweapons. According to Meta-owned WhatsApp, the alleged attacks had been disrupted in December 2024, and it is unclear for how long the users may have been under threat.
Francesco Cancellato, an Italian investigative journalist and director of news outlet Fanpage, was the first journalist to make his case public on 31 January. WhatsApp sent a notification to the journalist confirming that his device had been compromised. In June 2024, Fanpage reporters went undercover and exposed the youth wing of Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni’s party, Brothers of Italy, engaging in fascist chants.
The company is currently notifying, via WhatsApp, those users whose devices may have been infected.
IFJ’s project on the surveillance of journalists
Countering the surveillance of journalists has become one of the IFJ’s priorities following a surge in spying on reporters in recent years.
As part of a new project on the surveillance of journalists, the Federation is leading a global research study and data collection project to explore means of surveillance. It aims to develop tools and education materials to help journalists protect their materials and resources as well as to develop an international policy and guidelines for the sales and use of surveillance technologies.
Journalists who have been alerted about a possible breach of their devices are encouraged to contact ifj@ifj.org.
Knowledge gathered will be used to inform the IFJ campaign to counter the surveillance of journalists.
IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said: “We strongly condemn the spying on journalists and civil society actors, which violates national laws. These practices are designed to intimidate and undermine the work of journalists and the media. If Meta knows who stands behind these atrocities, it must disclose this information to uphold accountability. We are glad that the IFJ will be leading the fight against surveillance on journalists in cooperation with national unions of journalists, professional groups and international bodies.”
Source: IFJ
