The US government has imposed financial sanctions on the Intellexa Consortium [7], a commercial spyware company led by former Israeli military officer Tal Jonathan Dilian [3] [5], for developing and selling the Predator malware [1].

Description

This malware allowed unauthorized access to smartphones [5], enabling mass surveillance campaigns targeting dissidents [5], journalists [5], political candidates [5], and opposition figures [5]. The sanctions target individuals Felix Bitzios [3] [5] [6], Andrea Nicola Constantino Hermes Gambazzi [2] [6], Merom Harpaz [2] [6], Panagiota Karaoli [2] [6], Artemis Artemiou [2] [6], and the Aliada Group Inc. [6], associated with Intellexa [1] [6] [7], including senior executives and associates involved in selling the spyware to authoritarian governments. The Treasury has also sanctioned Aliada Group, a British Virgin Islands-based company [1] [4], for facilitating transactions for the spyware-making consortium [7]. These actions follow previous sanctions on Intellexa’s founder, Tal Dilian [3] [5] [7], and a corporate offshoring specialist [5], Sara Hamou [5]. The Predator malware [1] [4] [6] [7], developed by Intellexa’s North Macedonian Cytrox business [1], is used by repressive regimes for surveillance through zero-click exploits. Amnesty International’s Security Lab reported that Predator was used to target high-profile individuals [3] [5], including the president of the European Parliament and the president of Taiwan [5]. Europe has also experienced spyware incidents involving Predator [5], leading to the resignation of government officials in Greece [5]. Assets of the sanctioned individuals and companies in the US are frozen [1], and transactions with them are prohibited [1]. Apple recently dropped a lawsuit against NSO Group over concerns of revealing defensive measures that could be used by spyware vendors to bypass controls [1]. The US Department of the Treasury has sanctioned five executives of Intellexa Consortium and an associated entity for their involvement in the development and distribution of Predator spyware [2], which has been used by governments and state-backed threat actors for surveillance and data compromise [2]. Among those sanctioned are Intellexa SA Manager Felix Bitzios [2], Intellexa SA Manager and Intellexa Consortium executive Merom Harpaz [2], Cytrox Holdings General Manager Artemis Artemiou [2], Intellexa Limited and Thalestris Limited beneficial owner Andrea Nicola Constantino Hermes Gambazzi [2], and Panagiota Karaoli [2] [6], who serves as director at several Intellexa Consortium organizations [2]. The sanctions mark the first time penalties have been issued over the misuse of spyware [3], reflecting growing concerns over mass surveillance campaigns and privacy violations [3].

Conclusion

These sanctions highlight the serious consequences of developing and selling spyware for unauthorized surveillance purposes. They also underscore the need for increased vigilance and regulation in the cybersecurity industry to prevent further privacy violations and protect individuals and organizations from malicious actors. The actions taken by the US government serve as a warning to other companies and individuals involved in similar activities, signaling a shift towards holding accountable those responsible for enabling mass surveillance and data compromise.

References

[1] https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/us-ramps-up-sanctions-spywaremaker/
[2] https://www.scmagazine.com/brief/additional-us-sanctions-imposed-against-intellexa
[3] https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/us-imposes-sanctions-spyware-firm-tool-spy-dissidents-113731788
[4] https://www.techradar.com/pro/security/intellexa-hit-by-additional-sanctions-by-us-government
[5] https://apnews.com/article/spyware-sanctions-intellexa-israel-biden-treasury-3951466b68fd592f4db4e164525de824
[6] https://www.globalsecurity.org/intell/library/news/2024/intell-240916-treasury01.htm
[7] https://techcrunch.com/2024/09/16/us-government-expands-sanctions-against-spyware-maker-intellexa/