The move marks a sharp turnaround for the technology giant, which previously downplayed the threat posed by the spyware, and underscores growing concern and frustration among technology companies about the proliferation of attacks against its customers.
The Israeli company has in the past sold its surveillance software to Saudi Arabia, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates and other countries with poor human rights records. The company has consistently defended its actions by claiming that its surveillance tools are meant to be used by its customers to investigate serious crimes and terrorism. It has also alleged that it has no information about how its tools are used against targets.
The development comes months after security researchers at Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto, which have closely tracked the targeting of dissidents and journalists with spyware, said they had discovered an exploit that they believe had been used to silently hack into iPhones and other devices since February 2021.
