US Judge Slashes Spyware Damages, Bars Future Hacking
Al-Monitor reports a US judge granted an injunction against NSO Group for targeting WhatsApp users, yet simultaneously slashed a $168 million damages award to a paltry $4 million. This, for a company whose Pegasus spyware has been used by various governments to target journalists, dissidents, and human rights activists globally - not just 'undesirables.' The judge decided NSO's behavior didn't
meet the 'particularly egregious' standard for the original jury's payout. One has to wonder how many dead journalists or disappeared activists it takes to cross that threshold. While the US government has, on one hand, blacklisted NSO for its operations, this financial ruling signals a curious leniency. It tells companies that privacy violations and aiding state-sponsored surveillance might be
costly, but certainly not prohibitively so. The message appears to be: violate privacy, enable repression, but make sure it’s not *too* egregious – and maybe you'll get a volume discount on the consequences.