Apple asked a court Friday to dismiss its three-year-old hacking lawsuit against spyware pioneer NSO Group, arguing that it might never be able to get the most critical files about NSO’s Pegasus surveillance tool and that its own disclosures could aid NSO and its increasing number of rivals, reports The Washington Post.
A redacted version of the filing in San Francisco federal court cited a July article in the Guardian, which reported that Israeli officials had taken files from NSO’s headquarters. The newspaper said the officials asked an Israeli court to keep the action secret even from those involved in an earlier, still pending hacking suit against NSO filed by Meta’s WhatsApp. According to the WSJ, Israeli ministry of justice communications that were hacked showed that officials were concerned about sensitive information reaching Americans, the newspaper said.
“While Apple takes no position on the truth or falsity of the Guardian Story described above, its existence presents cause for concern about the potential for Apple to obtain the discovery it needs,” the iPhone maker wrote in its filing Friday. Israeli officials have not disputed the authenticity of the documents but have denied interfering in the U.S. litigation.
In January Apple tallied a win in its legal battle with the NSO Group and the Israeli firm’s efforts to move Apple’s lawsuit against it to its home country. A judge denied NSO’s motion to dismiss Apple’s case “in all respects,” and rejected the group’s arguments that Apple should be required to bring its lawsuit to Israel, deciding instead that the case will proceed in the U.S. The court also ruled that Apple had adequately alleged that NSO violated the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) and California’s Unfair Competition Law, breached its contract with Apple, and that NSO unjustly enriched itself at the expense of Apple and its users.
In November 2021, Apple filed a lawsuit against NSO Group and its parent company “to hold it accountable for the surveillance and targeting of Apple users.” NSO Group Technologies is a technology firm primarily known for its proprietary spyware Pegasus, which is capable of remote zero-click surveillance of smartphones. It was founded in 2010 by Niv Karmi, Omri Lavie, and Shalev Hulio
In its lawsuit,Apple said the complaint provides new information on how the NSO Group infected victims’ devices with its Pegasus spyware. To prevent further abuse and harm to its users, Apple said it’s also seeking a permanent injunction to ban NSO Group from using any Apple software, services, or devices.
