Unredacted court documents released on Thursday (Nov 14) show that NSO Group, the company behind the Pegasus spyware, admitted to developing exploits to hack into the phones of around 1,400 WhatsApp users in 2019.

Israel-based NSO admits hacking 1,400 WhatsApp users with Pegasus spyware, unsealed court docs reveal

NSO Group, an Israeli company known for its advanced cyber weaponry, has been ordered by a US court to provide instant messaging platform WhatsApp with codes of its notorious spyware Pegasus, as well as other spyware technology.

US judge orders Pegasus maker NSO to share secret spyware code with WhatsApp

Hackers have used the notorious Pegasus spyware to break into the phones of dozens of journalists and activists in Jordan over the past four years, according to the findings of an investigation released Thursday.

Dozens of journalists and activists hacked using Pegasus spyware in Jordan: Report

In light of the Pegasus spying scandal, Apple on Tuesday has filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent NSO Group from targeting the over one billion iPhones in circulation.

Apple sues Israeli spyware firm NSO, seeks a permanent injunction to ban NSO

Israels NSO group and Candiru have been blacklisted by the United States of America. The US govt said that these companies sold spyware to certain foreign govts, which was then subsequently used to target US officials, journalists and others.

United States: NSO, Candiru accused of selling hacking tools

The United States Commerce Department has blacklistsed NSO, the maker of Israeli spyware Pegasus for maliciously targetting journalists. According to US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, ''The United States is committed to aggressively using export controls to hold companies accountable that develop, traffic, or use technologies to conduct malicious activities that threaten the cybersecurity of members of civil society, dissidents, government officials, and organisations here and abroad.

Pegasus snooping: US blacklists spyware maker NSO Group for maliciously targetting journalists