A Spanish judge has reopened a probe into the suspected spying on the cellphone of Spain’s prime minister after receiving a request to collaborate with a similar investigation in France. The judge with Spain’s National Court stated that there is reason to believe that the new information provided by France can help the investigations to advance.
Both probes revolve around the alleged use of Pegasus spyware developed by the Israeli NSO Group. This spyware operates covertly by infiltrating phones or other devices to collect data and potentially spy on their owners. NSO Group claims that the spyware is exclusively available to governments for combating terrorism and other security threats. Pegasus has reportedly targeted over 1,000 individuals across 50 countries, including activists and journalists, as per security researchers and a 2021 global media investigation.
In May 2022, Spain disclosed that Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and three of his ministers, including the ministers of defense and interior, were victims of Pegasus spyware. The initial judicial probe was temporarily halted due to lack of progress. Similarly, French President Emmanuel Macron and several of his ministers have allegedly been targeted by Pegasus.
Furthermore, in a separate case of alleged Pegasus spying in Spain, the Spanish government has acknowledged using the spyware to hack the phones of prominent Catalan separatists.
