Journalists Say They Feel Constantly Watched After Pegasus Spyware Revelations

WASHINGTON - Human rights and press freedom groups have expressed outrage over revelations that 180 journalists around the world were targeted for surveillance by military-grade Israeli spyware.

The private Israeli company NSO Group sold its Pegasus surveillance software to governments, some of which used it to target journalists and human rights activists. The software was even used against government leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron. Macron has called for an investigation, and Israel says it is appointing a task force to investigate. NSO says the spyware is intended to help catch criminals and terrorists. However, an international investigation started by the Paris-based Forbidden Stories and Amnesty International, known as the Pegasus Project, found that the spyware has been used extensively by a cluster of 10 countries to target journalists and activists, penetrating their cellphones and even taking over their phone’s cameras.