Matthew Sparkes is a writer.
The prime minister has an office and residence in London.
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Security experts claim that the UK prime minister's office was targeted multiple times. The NSO Group created the Pegasus software that allows security services to listen in to the microphone on a compromised phone, read messages and access sensitive data.
The Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto has been studying the use of spyware for years and claims to have warned the UK government of attacks in 2020.
The group says it has found evidence for multiple suspected infections of devices used by the prime minister's office and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. It claims that the attacks against the FCO were carried out from the United Arab Emirates, India, Cyprus, and Jordan.
The main goal of the Citizen Lab is to watch for the use ofspyware against charities and aid groups, but sometimes it finds evidence of state-on.
According to a report by The New Yorker, the UK National Cyber Security Centre scanned many devices used by the staff at Downing Street, but was unable to find evidence of an intrusion. The report quotes a Citizen Lab member who believes that the UK has been burned.
NSO, which was founded by former Israeli state surveillance operators, says it licenses customers to use its software only for their lawful and necessary purposes. The Citizen Lab has previously reported that Pegasus is being used to watch journalists, academics and politicians.
According to researchers, the phones of journalists at Al Jazeera and Al Araby TV have been hacked, as well as people at the human rights organisation. Mexico used the software to target journalists and their families. It was also suspected of attacks on Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his associates.
Jake Moore at internet security company ESET says that the government often uses tools like Pegasus to carry out espionage against other states. It can be transmitted without the knowledge of users.
The software can copy messages, view photos, record phone calls and even secretly view the user via the phone's camera. High-profile people must be aware of the ease at which this can occur and must take precautions such as using a second device for official business and hold private meetings away from any device where possible.
The FCDO and the prime minister's press office wouldn't comment on security matters. NSO Group didn't reply to the request for comment.
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