The Israeli government's response to Ukraine and Estonia's requests to buy and use the powerful Pegasus surveillance software to hack Russian mobile phones was negative, according to people familiar with the discussions.
Israel fears that selling the internet super weapon would ruin its relations with the Kremlin.
Both Ukraine and Estonia were hoping to buy Pegasus to gain access to Russian phones as part of intelligence operations years before the Russian invasion.
However, Israel's Defense Ministry refused to grant permission to the company developing the software to sell it to the two countries if their goal was to use Pegasus against Russia. The decision came years after Israel has given foreign governments permission to use the spy software for internal repression.
Pegasus is a tool for hackers that can remotely extract all data from a target's mobile phone, including photos, contacts, messages and videos, without the user having to click on a phishing link to allow the software remote access. It can also turn the phone into a surveillance and secret recording device, even spying on its owner.
Ukraine had already submitted a request to acquire Pegasus, as it has been increasingly facing the problem of Russian aggression since the Russian invasion of Crimea in 2014. At the same time, Ukrainian officials sought Israeli defense equipment to counter the Russian threat. But Israel has imposed a near-total embargo on arms sales.
Estonia began negotiations in 2018 and Israel initially authorized the license, apparently unaware that the country intended to use the system to attack Russian phones.
Reports from the Ukrainian side say Kiev felt disappointed after the Israelis refused, as it could prove useful for monitoring Russian military programs.
However, the software is causing global controversy, as it was previously identified as being used to intercept conversations of Emmanuel Macron, King Mohammed VI of Morocco, numerous journalists and activists.
Source: protothema.gr
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