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🇿🇦 South Africa /Elections & Politics

At Least 14 Serbians Targeted With Mercenary Spyware Ahead of Local Elections, Rights Group Says

From Daily Maverick · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • The SHARE Foundation said at least 14 Serbian students, activists and opposition figures were targeted with advanced spyware ahead of March local elections.
  • Investigators identified at least one Pegasus infection and two cases involving malware resembling NoviSpy, while Reuters could not determine who was responsible.
  • Rights advocates said using such spyware without judicial authorization would violate Serbian law.

At least 14 people from Serbia’s civil society were targeted with advanced spyware before local elections in March, in what the SHARE Foundation called the country’s largest documented wave of such infections.

They could access the microphone and camera on the phone and turn them on while we shower or speak about private matters. It's not normal to do that; it's not normal that we don't have the right to privacy.

· MilicaA Serbian student activist described the access spyware could obtain to her phone.

The confirmed targets included members of a student movement, activists, opposition lawmakers and a local councilor. One device was infected with Pegasus, spyware made by the Israeli company NSO Group. At least two others carried malware resembling NoviSpy, which Amnesty International first exposed in Serbia in December 2024.

One student activist, who identified herself only as Milica, said she received a notification in mid-August that her phone had been infected. “They could access the microphone and camera on the phone and turn them on while we shower or speak about private matters. It's not normal to do that; it's not normal that we don't have the right to privacy,” she said.

These new forensic findings show that Serbian student activists continue to be targeted with invasive spyware.

· Donncha Ó CearbhaillThe head of Amnesty International’s security lab commented on the investigation.

SHARE said one student movement member’s device was targeted with a zero-click version of Pegasus, which requires no action from the user. NoviSpy was found on another student activist’s phone after police had previously taken the device during questioning. The targeting coincided with March 29 local elections in 10 municipalities, which SHARE described as a test of whether student-backed opposition groups could organize and challenge ruling-party politicians.

Totalitarian technology is being weaponized against a free people demanding the rule of law.

· Joe WilsonThe U.S. representative criticized the alleged surveillance in a post on X.

Donncha Ó Cearbhaill, head of Amnesty International’s security lab, said the forensic findings showed that student activists continued to face invasive surveillance. U.S. Representative Joe Wilson accused the Serbian government of weaponizing “totalitarian technology” against people demanding the rule of law. Legal expert Ana Toskic Cvetinovic said Serbian law requires a reasoned court decision before such software can be used, adding that there was no such authorization to her knowledge. Reuters could not identify those responsible. Serbia’s government and NSO Group did not respond to requests for comment.

There must be a reasoned court decision. To our knowledge, there is no such thing here.

· Ana Toskic CvetinovicThe Serbian legal expert discussed the authorization required under Serbian law.
About this summary

Originally published by Daily Maverick in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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