US defence contractor in talks to take over NSO Group's hacking technology

Source: The Guardian

US defence contractor in talks to take over NSO Group’s hacking technology

Deal – which would require approval from US and Israel – would give L3Harris control over controversial Pegasus tool

Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Washington
@skirchy
Tue 14 Jun 2022 21.25 BST
First published on Tue 14 Jun 2022 21.00 BST

The US defence contractor L3Harris is in talks to take over NSO Group’s surveillance technology, in a possible deal that would give an American company control over one of the world’s most sophisticated and controversial hacking tools.

Multiple sources confirmed that discussions were centred on a sale of the Israeli company’s core technology – or code – as well as a possible transfer of NSO personnel to L3Harris. But any agreement still faces significant hurdles, including requiring the blessing of the US and Israeli governments, which have not yet given the green light to a deal.

In a statement, a senior White House official said: “Such a transaction, if it were to take place, raises serious counterintelligence and security concerns for the US government.”

This story was jointly reported by the Guardian, the Washington Post and Haaretz.

If agreed, the deal would mark an astounding turnaround for NSO, less than a year after the Biden administration placed the company on a US blacklist and accused it of acting “contrary to the foreign policy and national security interests of the US”.

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jun/14/nso-group-pegasus-us-l3harris