Statement from Citizen Lab Director on Attempted Operations Against Researchers

Minimalist · Jan 26, 2019

Over the last month, two Citizen Lab staff members were contacted by two separate individuals in what appears to be an attempt to compromise our work. Each of the contacts purported to show an interest in the staff members’ personal, non-Citizen Lab related interests, and presented themselves as serious and professional. In each case, the interactions turned to Citizen Lab’s research on commercial spyware, and specifically our research on NSO Group. We have no evidence NSO Group itself is responsible for the outreach.
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https://citizenlab.ca/2019/01/state...-on-attempted-operations-against-researchers/

Minimalist · Jan 26, 2019

Internet watchdog Citizen Lab targeted in comically inept undercover sting

It was almost like an episode of Spy vs. Spy—a security researcher conceals a camera on his person to record an undercover operative who, under false pretenses and with his own hidden camera, quizzes the researcher about work he did exposing an Israeli exploit seller with highly questionable ethics.

In fact, the counter-sting happened earlier this month, according to an article published Friday by the Associated Press. Researchers at Internet watchdog group Citizen Lab orchestrated the sting after they grew suspicious of a man calling himself Michael Lambert who contacted Citizen Lab researcher John Scott-Railton to request a lunch meeting at a swanky Toronto hotel. The suspicions were fueled by an earlier meeting in December, in which a man masquerading as a socially conscious investor named Gary Bowman grilled a different Citizen Lab researcher about work the watchdog did exposing NSO Group, the Israeli exploit seller.
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https://arstechnica.com/information...ents-targeting-internet-watchdog-citizen-lab/

mirimir · Jan 27, 2019

Gotta love that NSO Group. These folks recruit from Unit 8200, the Israeli equivalent of the US NSA. And Unit 8200 recruits directly from the Israeli military, focusing on black-hat hackers.

guest · Feb 10, 2019

AP Exclusive: Undercover spy exposed in NYC was 1 of many
February 10, 2019
https://apnews.com/a1d1af4256c04cc5a36347667e966a14

The Associated Press has now learned of similar undercover efforts targeting at least four other individuals who have raised questions about the use of the Israeli firm’s spyware.

The four others targeted by operatives include three lawyers involved in related lawsuits in Israel and Cyprus alleging that the company, the NSO Group, sold its spyware to governments with questionable human rights records. The fourth is a London-based journalist who has covered the litigation.
Two of them — the journalist and a Cyprus-based lawyer — were secretly recorded meeting the undercover operatives; footage of them was broadcast on Israeli television just as the AP was preparing to publish this story.

All six of the people who were targeted said they believe the operatives were part of a coordinated effort to discredit them.
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mirimir · Feb 11, 2019

I vaguely recall reading that Israel has the largest number of spies working in the US, at any given time. A lot of them are in training, I think. It's like a tour of duty in the US is a standard part of Mossad training.

Minimalist · Feb 15, 2019

Citizen Lab Recommendations to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression

Citizen Lab has penned a submission to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Mr. David Kaye, in preparation for his report to the General Assembly in October 2019. The submission reviews Citizen Lab research on the use of private surveillance technology against human rights actors, describes some of the common practices of concern among private companies in the surveillance industry, and proposes a set of recommendations for the path forward.
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https://citizenlab.ca/2019/02/citiz...tion-right-to-freedom-opinion-and-expression/

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