Spyware used to target phones of Al Jazeera reporters

A file photo of Al Jazeera staff working at their TV station in Doha, Qatar. Dozens of journalists at Al Jazeera, the Qatari state-owned media company, have been targeted by advanced spyware in an attack attributed to the governments of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, a cybersecurity watchdog reported on Dec 20, 2020. — AP

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates: Dozens of journalists at Al Jazeera, the Qatari state-owned media company, have been targeted by advanced spyware in an attack likely linked to the governments of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, a cybersecurity watchdog reported on Dec 20.

Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto said it traced malware that infected the personal phones of 36 journalists, producers, anchors and executives at Al Jazeera back to the Israel-based NSO Group, which has been widely condemned for selling spyware to repressive governments.