Paragon Graphite is a Pegasus spyware clone used in the US –
The #malware surreptitiously pierces the protections of modern smartphones and evades the encryption of messaging apps like #Signal or #WhatsApp, sometimes harvesting the data from cloud backups – much like Pegasus does.
#spyware #US #Clone #Pegasus #NSO #DEA #ParagonGraphite #Paragon
The US government banned the use of NSO’s Pegasus spyware 18 months ago, but a new report today says that at least one government agency is using very similar malware from a rival company: Paragon Graphite.
According to four [industry figures], the US Drug Enforcement and Administration Agency is among the top customers for Paragon’s signature product nicknamed Graphite.The #malware surreptitiously pierces the protections of modern smartphones and evades the encryption of messaging apps like #Signal or #WhatsApp, sometimes harvesting the data from cloud backups – much like Pegasus does.
#spyware #US #Clone #Pegasus #NSO #DEA #ParagonGraphite #Paragon
Forwarded from Pegasus NSO & other spyware
Spyware maker Paragon terminates contract with Italian government: media reports | TechCrunch
#Paragon #ParagonGraphite #Italy
"Paragon Solutions, a startup that sells access to surveillance technologies including phone spyware, has cut ties with the Italian government, according to reports in The Guardian and Haaretz.
On Thursday, citing an anonymous source, The Guardian reported Paragon had first suspended its contract with Italy on Friday after WhatsApp said it had disrupted a hacking campaign leveraging the Israeli startup’s spyware targeting around 90 people. On Wednesday, Paragon terminated the contract once the company determined that the Italian government had broken “the terms of service and ethical framework it had agreed under its Paragon contract,” according to the British newspaper."#Paragon #ParagonGraphite #Italy
Forwarded from Pegasus NSO & other spyware
Italian government denies Paragon has cut spyware contract | Reuters
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#Paragon #ParagonGraphite #Spyware #Italy
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ROME, Feb 12 (Reuters) - Italy denied on Wednesday that Israeli spyware maker Paragon had cut ties with Rome following allegations that the Italian government had illegally used its technology to hack the phones of critics instead of criminals.
"Paragon has never suspended the service and has not terminated its contract," the cabinet undersecretary for intelligence matters, Alfredo Mantovano, told reporters."
"Italy's government subsequently said that seven mobile phone users in the country had been targeted by the spyware, which is intended for use on criminals. It denied any involvement in the illicit hack and called for an investigation.
However, the Guardian and Haaretz newspapers reported last week that Paragon had cut ties with Italy, allegedly because it did not believe the government denial."#Paragon #ParagonGraphite #Spyware #Italy
Forwarded from Pegasus NSO & other spyware
Virtue or Vice? A First Look at Paragon’s Proliferating Spyware Operations | Citizen Lab
#ParagonGraphite
Paragon Solutions was founded in Israel in 2019 and sells spyware called Graphite.
Infrastructure Analysis of Paragon Spyware. Based on a tip from a collaborator, we mapped out server infrastructure that we attribute to Paragon’s Graphite spyware tool. We identified a subset of suspected Paragon deployments, including in Australia, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Israel, and Singapore.
Potential links surfaced between Paragon Solutions and the Canadian Ontario Provincial Police, and found evidence of a growing ecosystem of spyware capability among Ontario-based police services.
We forensically analyzed multiple Android phones belonging to Paragon targets in Italy who were notified by WhatsApp. We found clear indications that spyware had been loaded into WhatsApp, as well as other apps on their devices.
We analyzed the iPhone of an individual who worked closely with confirmed Android Paragon targets.#ParagonGraphite
Forwarded from Pegasus NSO & other spyware
Graphite Caught: First Forensic Confirmation of Paragon’s iOS Mercenary Spyware Finds Journalists Targeted | The Citizen Lab
#ParagonGraphite #Graphite #Apple #iOS
On April 29, 2025, a select group of iOS users were notified by Apple that they were targeted with advanced spyware. Among the group were two journalists that consented for the technical analysis of their cases. The key findings from our forensic analysis of their devices are summarized below:
Our forensic analysis concluded that one of the journalist’s devices was compromised with Paragon’s Graphite spyware in January and early February 2025 while running iOS 18.2.1. We attribute the compromise to Graphite with high confidence because logs on the device indicated that it made a series of requests to a server that, during the same time period, matched our published Fingerprint P1. We linked this fingerprint to Paragon’s Graphite spyware with high confidence.
#ParagonGraphite #Graphite #Apple #iOS