Former MEP was hacked by the same gov behind the Pegasus attacks we exposed 2 years ago! @citizenlab.ca revealed that Stelios Kouloglou, former EU PEGA Committee member, was targeted by the same operator that hacked several Russian- & Belarusian-speaking journalists + activists living in EU 🧵1/

NEW: A politician investigating Pegasus spyware… had their phone hacked with Pegasus multiple times. The compromises came days ahead of key meetings of the spyware inquiry Story with @lhn.bsky.social

EU Politicians Investigated Pegasus Spyware. Then It Ended Up on One of Their Phones

“It is a direct attack on the rule of law,” says one European Parliament member of the new findings from Citizen Lab.

wired.com

Spyware used against MEP investigating Pegasus abuses, report finds www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...

Spyware used against MEP investigating Pegasus abuses, report finds

Researchers say Stelios Kouloglou’s device was compromised after he joined European parliamentary committee

theguardian.com

NEW: Russia hacked into the phone of a Putin political opponent with Cellebrite — three months after the company said it cut ties with the Russian government. Cellebrite said that “any use of legacy Cellebrite hardware in Russia after March 2021 is entirely unauthorized.” Clearly it didn’t matter.

Cellebrite said it cut off Russia, but Russia used its tools anyway | TechCrunch

Security researchers found evidence that Russian authorities hacked the iPhone of a political opponent using a phone-unlocking device made by Cellebrite, even after the company said it would stop sell...

techcrunch.com

NEW @citizenlab.ca report finds Russia 🇷🇺 used Cellebrite to break into activist's phone 👇 citizenlab.ca/research/rus...

Russia Breaks Into Human Rights Activist's Phone With Cellebrite - The Citizen Lab

We analyzed Russian activist Andrey Pivovarov’s phone, finding that Russian authorities used forensic extraction tools made by Cellebrite to gain access to his device. A document prepared by Russian a...

citizenlab.ca

BREAKING: @citizenlab.ca investigation reveals Russian security services used @cellebrite.bsky.social tools to hack the phone of a prominent former political prisoner Andrey Pivovarov. More on why this is concerning below 🧵1/ citizenlab.ca/research/rus...

Spoke to @darynant.bsky.social about Russia's new SORM regulation. These new mass surveillance rules are aimed at ensuring that the Russian people do not dare to express their critical views online out of fear of being identified and prosecuted. therecord.media/russia-upgra...

Russia upgrades rules for its digital spy system to better track citizens online

New regulations published by Russia's Ministry of Digital Development at the end of May updated the technical standards governing SORM, formally known as the System for Operative Investigative Activit...

therecord.media

Glad to see WhatsApp continuing to invest significant efforts & resources into countering the threat of spyware and holding companies like NSO Group accountable!

Access Now@accessnow.org · 2mo ago

Spyware attacks threaten the privacy and safety of people around the world. Following a landmark ruling against NSO Group, WhatsApp is seeking to hold the company accountable for violating the court’s order and continuing attempts to target users.

Spoke to Wired Italia @rositarijtano.bsky.social about the lack of justice for the victims of Paragon’s spyware 1 year after WhatsApp notifications. www.wired.it/article/ital...

One Year On, Italy Is Still Waiting for Answers From Paragon Over Spyware Scandal

In 2025, Graphite spyware was discovered on the phones of Italian journalists and activists. Prosecutors have not yet received answers from Paragon, the Israeli spyware maker

wired.it

Greece 🇬🇷 has witnessed a flurry of corruption and espionage against journalists, but the journalists are relentless and principled and the truth will eventually come out through the courts and through public interest investigations. www.dnews.gr/eidhseis/new...

Citizen Lab’s Ron Deibert: “Accountability may be delayed, but the truth will emerge” - Dnews

Greece’s spyware scandal remains a live test case for Europe’s rule of law, according to Ron Deibert, founder and director of Citizen Lab, who warned in Athens that the global expansion of the commerc...

dnews.gr

Oh and here's the photo of the UN officials inspecting the poster after I refused to let Egyptian security take it away (2009). The poster is framed and hung on the wall of the inside of @citizenlab.ca to this day :)

Another interesting coincidence: cofounder of @accessnow.org @brettsolomon.bsky.social was in attendance at that IGF, and that's where he and I first met. He described to me his vision for @accessnow.org which he was about to start.

Interesting coincidence: I faced a similar type of pressure in 2009 in Egypt 🇪🇬 because of China 🇨🇳 at the UN's Internet Governance Forum (IGF) China forced UN officials to shut down our book launch because our book mentioned Tibet. Big standoff between security & me news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technol...

As many are aware by now, @accessnow.org 's annual @rightscon.org was cancelled because of pressure on the host govt Zambia 🇿🇲 by China 🇨🇳 www.rightscon.org/rc26-stateme... In their statement, @accessnow.org rightly flags this is as an example of transnational repression

A statement to our community about why RightsCon 2026 will not take place in Zambia

Our official statement to the digital rights community about why RightsCon 2026 will not take place in Zambia

rightscon.org

I have many thoughts about the last-minute cancellation of #RightsCon in Zambia, what it means for the community, and what lessons must be learned. But first, I’m sharing empathy for the @accessnow.org team and everyone dealing with financial, logistical, and security fallout from this situation.

Zambia announced it was cancelling the large digital freedoms conference RightsCon days before it was to be held in Lukasa even as thousands were en route. Officials cited concerns about the conference's themes. The Chinese govt reportedly bankrolled the event venue. therecord.media/zabia-cancel...

Zambia cancels global digital freedoms conference days before start

On Tuesday, Zambia’s Minister of Technology and Science offered the first hint that the conference would be cancelled, telling a Zambian news outlet that participants’ security clearances were incompl...

therecord.media

The short notice cancellation of RightsCon 2026 in Zambia is a dangerous precedent for digital rights and press freedom. It weakens global exchange on freedom of expression and undermines the spirit of UNESCO's World Press Freedom Day. 👉 Read Tabani Moyo's interview: akademie.dw.com/en/righscon-...

"This is going to spread like a veld fire."

Tabani Moyo, Regional Secretariat Director of the Media Institute for Southern Africa (MISA), on the cancellation of RightsCon in Zambia and its effects on World Press Freedom Day celebrations.

akademie.dw.com

We're grateful to Access Now for its leadership and for speaking up clearly and directly about the interference that led to the cancellation of RightsCon this week. This incident only emphasizes why their work is so important!

A statement to our community about why RightsCon 2026 will not take place in Zambia

Our official statement to the digital rights community about why RightsCon 2026 will not take place in Zambia

rightscon.org

This cancellation is going to get caught up in geopolitics, but I want to underscore the biggest losers are civil societies in Africa, Lat Am, Southeast Asia — and that China is the reason for this. 4/5

China is the reason why @rightscon.org, one of the world's largest human rights conferences attended by thousands, has been canceled in Zambia — a location specifically chosen to honor the Global South. I've been to the past three (Taipei, Costa Rica, online). Some thoughts... 1/5

This is an attack on civil society ... "World’s Largest Digital Human Rights Conference Suddenly Canceled" www.404media.co/rightscon-hu...

World’s Largest Digital Human Rights Conference Suddenly Canceled

RightsCon was delayed by Zambia's Ministry of Information for "thematic issues" and problems with speakers.

404media.co

🌍 Members and partners of IFEX and the @gfmd.info strongly condemn the Zambian government's last-minute cancellation of RightsCon 2026, a decision driven by Chinese pressure over the participation of Taiwanese delegates. Read the statement: buff.ly/2Y6Scvw

RightsCon was delayed by Zambia's Ministry of Information for "thematic issues" and problems with speakers.

World’s Largest Digital Human Rights Conference Suddenly 'Postponed'

RightsCon was delayed by Zambia's Ministry of Information for "thematic issues" and problems with speakers.

404media.co

Access Now, the group that organizes RightsCon, says Zambian officials asked it to exclude Taiwanese participants if it wanted the event to proceed as planned. www.wired.com/story/the-ch...

The Chinese Government Just Got the World’s Largest Digital Rights Conference Canceled

Access Now, the group that organizes RightsCon, says Zambian officials asked it to exclude Taiwanese participants if it wanted the event to proceed as planned.

wired.com

The Zambia government’s flimsy reasons for postponing RightsCon suggest that the government wanted to control the summit’s human rights agenda. The authorities should fully explain the last-minute cancellation, which is a serious loss for the promotion of human rights.

Zambia: Summit on Human Rights, Technology Effectively Canceled

The Zambian government's decision to postpone RightsCon 2026, effectively canceling the summit, raises concerns about the authorities' commitment to free expression and assembly and about possible Chinese government interference.

hrw.org

Das ist heftig: China hat durch Infrastrukturprojekte im Globalen Süden über Jahrzehnte massive Abhängigkeiten geschaffen. Jetzt soll die Volksrepublik diese Macht genutzt haben, um die #RightsCon in Sambia zu verhindern, eine der wichtigsten Konferenzen für digitale Grund- und Menschenrechte.

Druck aus China soll zu Absage der RightsCon geführt haben

Eine der wichtigsten Konferenzen zu digitalen Grund- und Menschenrechten sollte diese Woche in Sambia stattfinden. Doch die Veranstaltung in dem südafrikanischen Land wurde kurzfristig abgesagt. Die V...

netzpolitik.org

hats off to the RightsCon leadership for their unwavering integrity under such immense pressure this is a huge loss to the digital rights community but rightsCon's moral integrity comes through unscathed; a silver lining during a dark moment

Zeyi Yang 杨泽毅@zeyiyang.bsky.social · 3mo ago

BREAKING: The Chinese government pressured Zambia to screen + exclude Taiwanese speakers attending @rightscon.org, leading to the largest international convention on digital rights being canceled a week before it takes place, the host org @accessnow.org tells WIRED. By @telliotter.bsky.social + me

More than just canceling a conference: “China’s assault on RightsCon is further emblematic of its broader efforts to influence global digital norms-setting” In @techpolicypress.bsky.social www.techpolicy.press/chinas-disru...

China's Disruption of RightsCon is a Wake-Up Call To Counter Its Authoritarian Influence

RightsCon’s cancellation should inspire a reckoning with China’s influence, writes Michael Caster, head of the Global China Program at ARTICLE 19.

techpolicy.press

Eine der wichtigsten globalen Konferenzen zu digitalen Grund- & Menschenrechten sollte diese Woche in Sambia stattfinden. Doch die Veranstaltung wurde kurzfristig abgesagt. Veranstalter @accessnow.org erhebt schwere Vorwürfe: Wegen taiwanesischer Gäste übte der NGO zufolge China Druck aus #rightscon

Druck aus China soll zu Absage der RightsCon geführt haben

Eine der wichtigsten Konferenzen zu digitalen Grund- und Menschenrechten sollte diese Woche in Sambia stattfinden. Doch die Veranstaltung in dem südafrikanischen Land wurde kurzfristig abgesagt. Die V...

netzpolitik.org