NSO Group Fined $168 Million for Hacking WhatsApp on Behalf of Spy Agencies
A US federal jury in California has imposed a $168 million penalty on Israeli surveillance firm NSO Group. The verdict marks the end of a six-year legal battle between NSO and WhatsApp’s parent company, Meta. The case exposed the inner mechanics of the global spyware industry, including how high-level tools are developed, sold, and used.
Spyware Tools Come at a High Cost
Testimony during the trial revealed that NSO charged European governments a standard fee of $7 million to hack up to 15 devices simultaneously. According to Sarit Bizinsky Gil, the firm’s vice president of global business operations, the cost rose by an additional $1 million to $2 million if the customer wanted to hack phones outside their own country.
“It is a highly sophisticated product,” said Meta lawyer Antonio Perez. “And it carries a hefty price tag.”
Thousands of Devices Were Compromised
Between 2018 and 2020, NSO broke into thousands of devices, said Tamir Gazneli, NSO’s vice president of research and development. He rejected the term “spyware,” claiming the tools were meant for intelligence gathering. In a tense exchange, Gazneli stated that the targets were not individuals but “intelligence targets of intelligence agencies.”
When asked by Meta’s legal team whether the targets were considered people, Gazneli replied, “That’s not what I said… The targets are intelligence targets.”
US Government Agencies Paid Millions
Court records showed that American agencies—the CIA and the FBI—collectively paid NSO $7.6 million. While previous reports had linked these agencies to NSO, the trial clarified the financial scope of those dealings. The CIA reportedly funded Djibouti’s acquisition of NSO’s tools, and the FBI explored them for potential testing.
NSO Kept Attacking WhatsApp Infrastructure
Despite being sued, NSO reportedly continued to exploit WhatsApp’s servers. Meta’s lawyers alleged that the firm maintained its activities even after the litigation began.
“NSO repeatedly targeted Plaintiffs, Plaintiffs’ servers, and Plaintiffs’ mobile client even after this litigation was filed,” Meta stated in a court filing.
Meta is now seeking a permanent injunction to prevent future abuses. The filing described NSO as posing a “significant threat of ongoing and prospective harm” to WhatsApp and its users.
The case is one of the most revealing legal confrontations involving a surveillance company, providing rare insights into the pricing, strategy, and ethics of commercial hacking tools.
with inputs from Reuters
