Security News > 2024 > February > The fight against commercial spyware misuse is heating up

In a report published on Tuesday, Google TAG named eleven commercial spyware vendors and their products - some of them more and some less known.

Apart from commercial surveillance vendors and private sector offensive actors, other actors on the spyware market include vulnerability researchers and exploit developers, government customers, and brokers that act as intermediaries between these groups.

Google's interest in disrupting the market is unsurprising, as commercial spyware often targets users of Google-made devices and software by exploiting previously unknown vulnerabilities.

A global effort to fight against misuse of commercial spyware.

Individuals involved in the misuse of commercial spyware to surveil, harass, or intimidate "Journalists, activists, other persons perceived to be dissidents for their work, members of marginalized communities or vulnerable populations, or the family members of these targeted individuals" Individuals believed to facilitate or derive financial benefit from such misuse of commercial spyware.

The fight against commercial spyware misuse seems to be heating up but, as Google's threat analysts pointed out, it will take a concentrated and sustained effort from governments, industry and civil society "To change the incentive structure which has allowed these technologies to spread".

News URL

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2024/02/07/fight-against-commercial-spyware/