Meta, the company behind WhatsApp, has announced that they have successfully stopped a spyware campaign that targeted around 90 individuals, primarily journalists and civil society members. The spyware originated from an Israeli company, Paragon Solutions, which has since been issued a cease-and-desist letter.

Currently, it is unknown who was behind the attack, but WhatsApp has confirmed that it was neutralized in December 2024.

This attack required zero user interaction—no downloads, no clicks. The spyware spread via PDF files sent to individuals who were added to group chats.

WhatsApp has notified all individuals presumed to be affected and provided them with guidance on how to protect themselves. The effort to dismantle and analyze the attack was carried out in collaboration with Citizen Lab, a renowned cybersecurity watchdog, which played a key role in reconstructing the attack.

Paragon Solutions markets itself as an ethical alternative to firms like NSO Group, claiming to operate only within democratic nations and adhere to human rights principles. However, even in democratic states, the risk of surveillance abuse remains high.

Spyware like this is typically sold to governments and law enforcement under the justification of national security and criminal investigations, but the lack of regulation makes it easy for these tools to be misused.

Even companies that claim to operate ethically—like Paragon Solutions—cannot guarantee that their technology won’t be exploited. The blurred lines between legitimate use and abuse continue to raise concerns, particularly when surveillance software ends up targeting journalists and activists instead of criminals.

In the United States, the use of this tool and similar tools has been paused, but there are countless examples proving that even in democratic nations, surveillance abuse is a case of when—not if.