The London High Court has ruled in favor of Ghanem Al-Masarir, a Saudi satirist and human rights activist, awarding him more than £3 million in damages after determining that his phone was hacked using government-grade spyware. Al-Masarir, known for his critical content on Saudi Arabia, alleged that his phone was targeted with Pegasus spyware, a tool typically sold to governments for surveillance purposes. The court also found evidence linking the Saudi government to a physical assault on Al-Masarir in London, coinciding with the hacking incident.
Real-world attacks like the one on Al-Masarir are often accompanied by digital surveillance tools such as Pegasus, underscoring the intersection of physical and digital threats faced by activists. Despite facing legal challenges and claims of state immunity from Saudi Arabia, the High Court held the Saudi government accountable for the hacking and assault against Al-Masarir.
This case highlights the use of sophisticated spyware technologies by governments for surveillance and potential targeting of dissenting voices. The ruling sets a precedent for holding state actors responsible for cyber intrusions and physical attacks on individuals, emphasizing the need for robust privacy protections and accountability measures in the digital age.
Source: TechCrunch