The United States has announced sanctions on two individuals and five entities associated with the Intellexa Consortium, alleging their involvement in developing and disseminating commercial spyware to target US officials, journalists, and other figures.
This picture taken on November 3, 2016 shows on a screen viruses list at the LHS (High Security Laboratory) of the INRIA (National Institute for Research in Computer Science and Automation) in Rennes. - Paradise where computer viruses blossom under the watchful eye of scientists, the Laboratory of high security (LHS-PEC) of Rennes is a small fortress from where emerge the first studies on the "ransomwares", those digital brigands which Dominate the malware market
Commercial Surveillance Tools
Brian Nelson, US Treasury Department's Under Secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, highlighted the escalating security threat posed by commercial surveillance tools, emphasizing the need for action.
Established in 2019, the Greece-based spyware vendor Intellexa Consortium functioned as a marketing label for firms offering commercial spyware and surveillance tools. According to the Treasury Department, the tools are packaged as a suite, known as "Predator" spyware, capable of infiltrating devices.
The department outlined the use of Predator spyware by foreign entities to monitor US government officials, journalists, and policy experts, prompting the imposition of sanctions.
"Today's actions represent a tangible step forward in discouraging the misuse of commercial surveillance tools, which increasingly present a security risk to the United States and our citizens," Nelson said in a statement.
"The United States remains focused on establishing clear guardrails for the responsible development and use of these technologies while also ensuring the protection of human rights and civil liberties of individuals around the world," he added.
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The Intellexa Consortium
The Intellexa Consortium, acting as an umbrella for various cyber companies, was reported to have offered Predator spyware as part of a suite of surveillance tools, facilitating targeted and mass surveillance campaigns globally.
The Predator spyware, utilizing zero-click attacks, could infiltrate electronic devices without user interaction, enabling unauthorized data extraction, geolocation tracking, and access to personal information.
The Treasury Department said that the Consortium's global reach enabled the dissemination of commercial spyware and surveillance technologies worldwide, including to authoritarian regimes, where it was reportedly misused to target individuals such as US government officials and journalists.
The proliferation of commercial spyware, as highlighted in Executive Order 14093 and the White House Fact Sheet, has raised concerns due to its potential for abuse by both authoritarian regimes and actors.
The US has recognized the imperative of countering the proliferation of commercial spyware to protect national security interests, promote democracy, uphold human rights, and defend activists, dissidents, and journalists.
To advance these objectives, robust protections and procedures have been established to ensure that any US government's use of commercial spyware helps safeguard its information systems against counterintelligence and mitigate the risks of proliferation and misuse of the spyware.
Due to the sanctions, assets and interests of the designated individuals and entities within the US jurisdiction are blocked, necessitating their reporting to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
Financial institutions and other entities engaging in transactions with the sanctioned entities risk exposure to sanctions or enforcement actions, including prohibitions on providing funds, goods, or services to designated persons.
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