https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ruling-party-figures-say-poland-has-pegasus-spyware-2022-01-07/

 
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January 7, 20221:57 PM UTCLast Updated ago
Europe

Ruling party figures say Poland has Pegasus spyware

Reuters

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2 minute read
The logo of Israeli cyber firm NSO Group is seen at one of its
branches in the Arava Desert, southern Israel July 22, 2021. REUTERS/
Amir Cohen
Leader of Law and Justice party Jaroslaw Kaczynski speaks during an
interview with Reuters in party headquarters in Warsaw, Poland
December 19, 2016. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel
The logo of Israeli cyber firm NSO Group is seen at one of its
branches in the Arava Desert, southern Israel July 22, 2021. REUTERS/
Amir Cohen
1/2

Leader of Law and Justice party Jaroslaw Kaczynski speaks during an
interview with Reuters in party headquarters in Warsaw, Poland
December 19, 2016. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel

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WARSAW, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Senior figures in the Polish government
indicated on Friday that the country had bought sophisticated spyware
developed by the Israel-based NSO Group, but denied that it had been
used against political opponents.

Reports from the Associated Press that NSO Group's Pegasus software
was used to hack the phones of government critics, including a
senator who ran the election campaign for the largest opposition
party in 2019, have led to accusations that special services are
undermining democratic norms.

Government figures had previously declined to comment on whether or
not Poland has access to Pegasus, citing laws on official secrets. In
December, a deputy defence minister said Poland did not use Pegasus.

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However, in extracts from an interview with conservative weekly Sieci
published on Friday, the leader of Poland's ruling nationalists Law
and Justice (PiS) indicated that Polish services had the software.

"Pegasus is a program that is used by services combating crime and
corruption in many countries...It would be bad if the Polish services
did not have this type of tool," Jaroslaw Kaczynski was quoted as
saying.

He rejected opposition claims that Pegasus had been used against
political opponents as "utter nonsense".

Asked about Pegasus during a news conference, Justice Minister
Zbigniew Ziobro said it would be a "disgrace" if Polish services did
not have access to such surveillance technology.

Krzysztof Brejza, the senator who, according to research bt the
University of Toronto's Citizen Lab project and Amnesty International
had his phone hacked in 2019 while running the election campaign of
the largest opposition party, said: "It is Jaroslaw Kaczynski who is
talking nonsense."

"Jaroslaw Kaczynski and his people...took away Poles' right to free
elections," he told private broadcaster TVN24.

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Reporting by Alan Charlish; Editing by Angus MacSwan

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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