The Biden administration has unveiled a new policy aimed at cracking down on the misuse of commercial spyware by foreign individuals. Under this policy, visa restrictions can be imposed on those involved in using commercial spyware to target various groups, including journalists, activists, dissidents, marginalized communities, and their family members. Additionally, individuals who facilitate or benefit financially from the misuse of such spyware may also face visa restrictions. Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized that the misuse of commercial spyware poses a threat to privacy, freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, and association. It has even been linked to severe human rights abuses, such as arbitrary detentions, forced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings in the most extreme cases.
This announcement builds upon an executive order issued by President Biden approximately a year ago, which limited the U.S. government’s use of commercial spyware that posed national security risks. The order required agencies to certify that the use of commercial programs did not present significant counterintelligence or security threats. The move came in response to a surge in cyberattacks targeting U.S. government employees across multiple countries.
Importantly, the visa restriction policy can be applied to individuals from any country found to have misused or facilitated the malign use of spyware, regardless of whether their home countries typically enjoy visa-free entry to the United States.
One well-known example of spyware is the Pegasus software developed by Israel’s NSO Group, which has been used to target over 1,000 individuals in 50 countries, according to security researchers and a global media investigation. Consequently, the U.S. has already imposed export limits on NSO Group, limiting the company’s access to American components and technology.
Recent reports have highlighted the use of Pegasus spyware in Jordan, where it was utilized to hack the cellphones of at least 30 individuals, including journalists, lawyers, human rights activists, and political figures. However, it is important to note that Access Now, a digital rights group, did not directly accuse the Jordanian government of being involved in the hacking.
In another alarming case, Amnesty International revealed that Pegasus spyware was installed on the phone of Hatice Cengiz, the fiancée of The Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, just four days after his murder in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in 2018. The NSO Group had previously been implicated in other instances of spying on Khashoggi.
With the introduction of these visa restrictions, the Biden administration aims to combat the misuse of commercial spyware and safeguard privacy, freedom of expression, and human rights.
The Biden administration has announced a new policy that enables visa restrictions on individuals involved in the misuse of commercial spyware. This policy applies to those who target journalists, activists, dissidents, marginalized communities, or their family members. It also includes individuals who facilitate or financially benefit from such misuse. The administration aims to combat the growing misuse of spyware, which threatens privacy, freedom of expression, and human rights. The best-known example of spyware, the Pegasus software from NSO Group, has already faced export limits from the U.S.
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