(CNN Business)An Italian company's hacking tool was used to spy on Apple and Android smartphones in Italy and Kazakhstan. Alphabet's Google said in a report on Thursday.
Milan-based RCS Lab claims European law enforcement as a client and reports that it has developed a tool to spy on private messages and contacts on targeted devices. The book states.
"These vendors enable dangerous hacking tools and government armaments that prevent these features from being developed in-house," Google said.
RCS Lab stated that its products and services comply with European rules and help law enforcement agencies investigate crimes.
"The RCS Lab personnel have not been disclosed and have not participated in the activities of the relevant customers," he added by emailing Reuters, accusing him of product abuse. rice field.
Google said it has taken steps to protect users of the Android operating system and warned about spyware.
The global industry for creating government spyware continues to grow, with more and more companies developing interception tools for law enforcement agencies. Anti-surveillance activists have accused them of supporting governments that may be using such tools to crack down on human and civil rights.
In recent years, the industry has received worldwide attention when Israeli surveillance firm NSO's Pegasus spyware has been found to be used by multiple governments to spy on journalists, activists and dissidents. Collected.
RCS Lab tools may not be as stealth as Pegasus, but they can read messages and display passwords, said Bill Marczak, security researcher at digital watchdog Citizen Lab. increase.
"This shows that even if these devices are everywhere, there is still a long way to go to protect them from these powerful attacks," he added.
RCS Lab describes on its website that it is a manufacturer of "lawful intercept" technologies and services such as voice, data acquisition and "tracking systems". It is said that Europe alone processes 10,000 intercepted targets every day.
Google researchers have discovered that RCS Lab had previously worked with the controversial Italian spy company Hacking Team. The team also created surveillance software for foreign governments to use phones and computers.
The hacking team was the victim of a major hack in 2015 and went bankrupt after numerous internal documents were disclosed.
Google said it may believe that hackers using RCS spyware are working with targeted Internet service providers. This suggests that it has something to do with government-backed attackers, said Billy Leonard, a senior researcher at Google.
