CEO of Israeli spyware company NSO Group resigns

By Muhammet Semiz

JERUSALEM (AA) - The chief executive officer of Israeli spyware firm NSO Group has resigned, local media reported Sunday.

The Times of Israel newspaper said Shalev Hulio has stepped down with immediate effect and Chief Operating Officer Yaron Shohat will take over the post until a successor is named.

An unnamed company official said NSO Group has embarked on a reorganization, and within this framework, 100 employees will be dismissed.

In June, the Spanish High Court called on Hulio to testify as part of an investigation into a hacking scandal.

NSO’s Pegasus spyware, which allows hackers to tap into virtually all data sources on a mobile phone, was successfully deployed against Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and other ministers.

Most of the hacking occurred during the peak of political tensions with Morocco which were triggered by Spain secretly treating Brahim Ghali, the man leading the Polisario Front in its fight for the independence of Western Sahara, for COVID-19 in April 2021.

However, 63 Catalan politicians were also targeted with Pegasus spyware, according to a report by the research group Citizen Lab. Spain’s intelligence agency has admitted to hacking some of the phones but has not confirmed the use of the spyware.

According to NSO Group, all of the company's products, including Pegasus spyware "are used exclusively by government intelligence and law enforcement agencies to fight crime and terror."