Latest news with #Ciro
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Yahoo
Researchers confirm two journalists were hacked with Paragon spyware
Two European journalists were hacked using government spyware made by Israeli surveillance tech provider Paragon, new research has confirmed. On Thursday, digital rights group The Citizen Lab published a new report detailing the results of a new forensic investigation into the iPhones of Italian journalist Ciro Pellegrino and an unnamed 'prominent' European journalist. The researchers said both journalists were hacked by the same Paragon customer, based on evidence found on the two journalists' devices. Until now, there was no evidence that Pellegrino, who works for online news website Fanpage, had been either targeted or hacked with Paragon spyware. When he was alerted by Apple at the end of April, the notification referred to a mercenary spyware attack, but did not specifically mention Paragon, nor whether his phone had been infected with the spyware. The confirmation of the first-ever known Paragon infections further deepens an ongoing spyware scandal that, for now, appears to be mostly focused on the use of spyware by the Italian government, but could expand to include other countries in Europe. These new revelations come months after WhatsApp first notified around 90 of its users in over two dozen countries in Europe and beyond, including journalists, that they had been targeted with Paragon spyware, known as Graphite. Among those targeted were several Italians, including Pellegrino's colleague and Fanpage director Francesco Cancellato, as well as non-profit workers who help to rescue migrants at sea. Last week, Italy's parliamentary committee known as COPASIR, which oversees the country's intelligence agencies' activities, published a report that said it found no evidence that Cancellato was spied on. The report, which confirmed that Italy's internal and external intelligence agencies AISI and AISE were Paragon customers, made no mention of Pellegrino. Citizen Lab's new report puts into question COPASIR's conclusions. 'A week ago it seemed like Italy was putting this scandal to bed. Now they'll have to reckon with new forensic evidence,' John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at The Citizen Lab, told TechCrunch ahead of the report's publication. 'Ciro's case adds to the big and politically tricky question: who has been hacking Italian journalists with Paragon spyware? This mystery needs an answer.' Scott-Railton said the Citizen Lab believes that the Italian government is in a position to definitively answer questions about what was done with their use of Paragon spyware, particularly regarding Ciro's case. Pellegrino told TechCrunch that he believes that his civil rights have been 'trampled upon.' 'I understand that Prime Minister Meloni is a professional journalist like me (I have been a journalist since 2005, she has since 2006),' Pellegrino told TechCrunch. 'Does she care about the rights of this type of workers? Why has she not spent a single word in solidarity with the journalists who have been spied on?' Do you have more information about Paragon, and this spyware campaign? From a non-work device, you can contact Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai securely on Signal at +1 917 257 1382, or via Telegram and Keybase @lorenzofb, or email. You also can contact TechCrunch via SecureDrop. After Cancellato revealed he had been targeted with spyware, the Italian government published a press release denying it was behind the targeting of any journalist or human rights activists. The fact that both Cancellato and Pellegrino work for the same outlet suggests they may be part of a 'cluster' of targets, according to the Citizen Lab report. Pellegrino said that he did not work on the blockbuster Fanpage investigation into the 'Gioventù Meloniana,' a group part of Meloni's Fratelli d'Italia party, which revealed that some of its members sympathize with fascism. Pellegrino, who is the head of Fanpage's Naples bureau, also said he hasn't worked on any investigation about immigration. 'It is possible that someone was hoping to gain information about Fanpage by hacking my smartphone,' said Pellegrino. TechCrunch reached out to the press office of the COPASIR; the parliament press office of the Partito Democratico (Democratic Party), whose member Lorenzo Guerini heads COPASIR; and the Italian government. None of them responded to our requests for comment. Referring to an email TechCrunch sent to Paragon and its executive chairman John Fleming, Emily Horne, who works for WestExec Advisors, said the spyware maker 'won't have anything new on this,' apart from what the company said earlier this week. At the time, Paragon told Israeli newspaper Haaretz that it offered the Italian government help to investigate Cancellato's alleged hack, but the government refused — and that's why the company cut ties with Italy. On April 29, 2025, the prominent European journalist received a notification from Apple, the same notification that Pellegrino received and on the same day, according to Citizen Lab. The lab's researchers analyzed the unnamed journalist's devices and found that one of them was infected with Graphite, based on forensic evidence showing that the spyware communicated with a server that the researchers had previously established with 'high confidence' was part of Paragon's infrastructure. Citizen Lab said the journalist was hacked with 'a sophisticated zero-click attack against the device via iMessage,' based on the researchers finding a specific iMessage account 'present in the device logs around the same time as the phone was communicating with the Paragon server.' Zero-click hacks are some of the most effective attacks given that, as the name suggests, they require no interaction from the target. And in this case, Citizen Lab said it believed the attack was invisible to the victim. According to the report, Apple told Citizen Lab that 'the attack deployed in these cases was mitigated in iOS 18.3.1,' which was released on February 10, 2025, some two weeks after WhatsApp notified the targets of Paragon spyware. Apple did not respond to TechCrunch's request for comment prior to publication. In the case of Pellegrino, Citizen Lab said it found the same iMessage account on his iPhone's logs. Given that it's typical for each government customer to have its own spyware infrastructure, Citizen Lab said it believed Pellegrino and the unnamed journalist were likely targeted by the same Paragon operator. The unnamed journalist's iPhone was infected in January and early February, said Citizen Lab. According to COPASIR's report, Paragon and its Italian intelligence customers suspended the company's surveillance systems on February 14, 2025, which means that the spy agencies AISE and AISI were still using Paragon's spyware when the prominent European journalist was hacked. For now, Citizen Lab has not attributed Pellegrino's and the other unnamed European journalist's hacks to any government. Citizen Lab noted in the report that it's possible some of the people who were notified of having been targeted with Graphite by WhatsApp may also have been infected, but, due to the fact that Android has limited logs, as well as 'efforts by Paragon to delete traces of the infection,' it may be impossible to confirm that. Apart from Pellegrino and the unnamed journalists, two other people have so far been confirmed to have been targeted with Paragon's spyware: Luca Casarini and Beppe Caccia, who both work for the Italian non-profit Mediterranea Saving Humans, which rescues immigrants who try to cross the Mediterranean Sea. Citizen Lab confirmed both were infected after analyzing their devices. In its report, COPASIR confirmed the two were surveilled by Italian spy agencies. There are other people who have said they received notifications of having been targeted. Their cases, however, are still somewhat unclear. David Yambio, a Sudanese citizen and president and co-founder of Refugees in Libya, a non-profit organization active in Italy that works on immigration issues, received a notification from Apple. After analyzing his device, Citizen Lab said it found traces of a spyware infection, but could not link the compromise to a particular spyware maker nor any government. COPASIR said Yambio was lawfully targeted by Italian intelligence agencies, but not with Graphite. COPASIR added that Yambio was under surveillance by the country's judicial authorities for a criminal investigation. Yambio's phone was registered to Mattia Ferrari, a priest who collaborates with Mediterranea. Ferrari also received the spyware notification from WhatsApp. COPASIR, however, said it found no evidence he was targeted with Graphite. Scott-Railton said that Citizen Lab forensic and technical analyses are ongoing on all cases, including Cancellato. Sign in to access your portfolio
TechCrunch
12-06-2025
- TechCrunch
Researchers confirm two journalists were hacked with Paragon spyware
Two European journalists were hacked using government spyware made by Israeli surveillance tech provider Paragon, new research has confirmed. On Thursday, digital rights group The Citizen Lab published a new report detailing the results of a new forensic investigation into the iPhones of Italian journalist Ciro Pellegrino and an unnamed 'prominent' European journalist. The researchers said both journalists were hacked by the same Paragon customer, based on evidence found on the two journalists' devices. Until now, there was no evidence that Pellegrino, who works for online news website Fanpage, had been either targeted or hacked with Paragon spyware. When he was alerted by Apple at the end of April, the notification referred to a mercenary spyware attack, but did not specifically mention Paragon, nor whether his phone had been infected with the spyware. The confirmation of the first-ever known Paragon infections further deepens an ongoing spyware scandal that, for now, appears to be mostly focused on the use of spyware by the Italian government, but could expand to include other countries in Europe. These new revelations come months after WhatsApp first notified around 90 of its users in over two dozen countries in Europe and beyond, including journalists, that they had been targeted with Paragon spyware, known as Graphite. Among those targeted were several Italians, including Pellegrino's colleague and Fanpage director Francesco Cancellato, as well as non-profit workers who help to rescue migrants at sea. Last week, Italy's parliamentary committee known as COPASIR, which oversees the country's intelligence agencies' activities, published a report that said it found no evidence that Cancellato was spied on. The report, which confirmed that Italy's internal and external intelligence agencies AISI and AISE were Paragon customers, made no mention of Pellegrino. Citizen Lab's new report puts into question COPASIR's conclusions. 'A week ago it seemed like Italy was putting this scandal to bed. Now they'll have to reckon with new forensic evidence,' John Scott-Railton, a senior researcher at The Citizen Lab, told TechCrunch ahead of the report's publication. 'Ciro's case adds to the big and politically tricky question: who has been hacking Italian journalists with Paragon spyware? This mystery needs an answer.' Scott-Railton said the Citizen Lab believes that the Italian government is in a position to definitively answer questions about what was done with their use of Paragon spyware, particularly regarding Ciro's case. Pellegrino told TechCrunch that he believes that his civil rights have been 'trampled upon.' 'I understand that Prime Minister Meloni is a professional journalist like me (I have been a journalist since 2005, she has since 2006),' Pellegrino told TechCrunch. 'Does she care about the rights of this type of workers? Why has she not spent a single word in solidarity with the journalists who have been spied on?' Contact Us Do you have more information about Paragon, and this spyware campaign? From a non-work device, you can contact Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai securely on Signal at +1 917 257 1382, or via Telegram and Keybase @lorenzofb, or Do you have more information about Paragon, and this spyware campaign? From a non-work device, you can contact Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai securely on Signal at +1 917 257 1382, or via Telegram and Keybase @lorenzofb, or email . You also can contact TechCrunch via SecureDrop After Cancellato revealed he had been targeted with spyware, the Italian government published a press release denying it was behind the targeting of any journalist or human rights activists. The fact that both Cancellato and Pellegrino work for the same outlet suggests they may be part of a 'cluster' of targets, according to the Citizen Lab report. Pellegrino said that he did not work on the blockbuster Fanpage investigation into the 'Gioventù Meloniana,' a group part of Meloni's Fratelli d'Italia party, which revealed that some of its members sympathize with fascism. Pellegrino, who is the head of Fanpage's Naples bureau, also said he hasn't worked on any investigation about immigration. 'It is possible that someone was hoping to gain information about Fanpage by hacking my smartphone,' said Pellegrino. TechCrunch reached out to the press office of the COPASIR; the parliament press office of the Partito Democratico (Democratic Party), whose member Lorenzo Guerini heads COPASIR; and the Italian government. None of them responded to our requests for comment. Referring to an email TechCrunch sent to Paragon and its executive chairman John Fleming, Emily Horne, who works for WestExec Advisors, said the spyware maker 'won't have anything new on this,' apart from what the company said earlier this week. At the time, Paragon told Israeli newspaper Haaretz that it offered the Italian government help to investigate Cancellato's alleged hack, but the government refused — and that's why the company cut ties with Italy. New forensic evidence emerges On April 29, 2025, the prominent European journalist received a notification from Apple, the same notification that Pellegrino received and on the same day, according to Citizen Lab. The lab's researchers analyzed the unnamed journalist's devices and found that one of them was infected with Graphite, based on forensic evidence showing that the spyware communicated with a server that the researchers had previously established with 'high confidence' was part of Paragon's infrastructure. Citizen Lab said the journalist was hacked with 'a sophisticated zero-click attack against the device via iMessage,' based on the researchers finding a specific iMessage account 'present in the device logs around the same time as the phone was communicating with the Paragon server.' Zero-click hacks are some of the most effective attacks given that, as the name suggests, they require no interaction from the target. And in this case, Citizen Lab said it believed the attack was invisible to the victim. According to the report, Apple told Citizen Lab that 'the attack deployed in these cases was mitigated in iOS 18.3.1,' which was released on February 10, 2025, some two weeks after WhatsApp notified the targets of Paragon spyware. Apple did not respond to TechCrunch's request for comment prior to publication. In the case of Pellegrino, Citizen Lab said it found the same iMessage account on his iPhone's logs. Given that it's typical for each government customer to have its own spyware infrastructure, Citizen Lab said it believed Pellegrino and the unnamed journalist were likely targeted by the same Paragon operator. The unnamed journalist's iPhone was infected in January and early February, said Citizen Lab. According to COPASIR's report, Paragon and its Italian intelligence customers suspended the company's surveillance systems on February 14, 2025, which means that the spy agencies AISE and AISI were still using Paragon's spyware when the prominent European journalist was hacked. For now, Citizen Lab has not attributed Pellegrino's and the other unnamed European journalist's hacks to any government. Citizen Lab noted in the report that it's possible some of the people who were notified of having been targeted with Graphite by WhatsApp may also have been infected, but, due to the fact that Android has limited logs, as well as 'efforts by Paragon to delete traces of the infection,' it may be impossible to confirm that. Other Graphite victims identified Apart from Pellegrino and the unnamed journalists, two other people have so far been confirmed to have been targeted with Paragon's spyware: Luca Casarini and Beppe Caccia, who both work for the Italian non-profit Mediterranea Saving Humans, which rescues immigrants who try to cross the Mediterranean Sea. Citizen Lab confirmed both were infected after analyzing their devices. In its report, COPASIR confirmed the two were surveilled by Italian spy agencies. There are other people who have said they received notifications of having been targeted. Their cases, however, are still somewhat unclear. David Yambio, a Sudanese citizen and president and co-founder of Refugees in Libya, a non-profit organization active in Italy that works on immigration issues, received a notification from Apple. After analyzing his device, Citizen Lab said it found traces of a spyware infection, but could not link the compromise to a particular spyware maker nor any government. COPASIR said Yambio was lawfully targeted by Italian intelligence agencies, but not with Graphite. COPASIR added that Yambio was under surveillance by the country's judicial authorities for a criminal investigation. Yambio's phone was registered to Mattia Ferrari, a priest who collaborates with Mediterranea. Ferrari also received the spyware notification from WhatsApp. COPASIR, however, said it found no evidence he was targeted with Graphite. Scott-Railton said that Citizen Lab forensic and technical analyses are ongoing on all cases, including Cancellato.
West Australian
10-06-2025
- Sport
- West Australian
New Bulldog relieved at first-up Canterbury reception
Lachlan Galvin has admitted he was relieved to be given a rousing reception by Canterbury fans, hopeful the door can now be closed on his Wests Tigers exit. After being the most talked about teen in rugby league for the past two months, Galvin was given a standing ovation in his first game for the Bulldogs on Monday. The 19-year-old's name was chanted behind the bench as he prepared to come on against Parramatta, while he was mobbed by fans after the 30-12 win. The playmaker was also applauded with his first touches of the football, before being mobbed when he scored a late try for the Bulldogs. Galvin's Tigers' exit has been one of the biggest talking points of the season, with his image clearly damaged in some quarters as a result of his public exit. Asked if he was relieved to be given such a welcome by a crowd of close to 60,000 on Monday, Galvin admitted he was. "It was (a relief). For the fans to get behind me (after) being here a week only is pretty cool," Galvin said. "That's all in the past now. "I just want to come over here and play good footy and enjoy my footy, that is the main reason I play and the reason I want to be here. "Walking over from the hotel (before the match) was pretty cool. It's going to be a good journey and something I want to be part of." Initially expected by coach Cameron Ciraldo to enter the club via reserve grade, Galvin won a bench spot in the NRL after impressing in his first days at training. He entered the field in the halves in the 57th minute, with off-contract No.7 Toby Sexton reverting to the hooker role. Galvin is now likely to be thrown straight into the starting halves alongside Sexton against South Sydney on Sunday, with Matt Burton on NSW State of Origin duties. "Whatever Ciro wants and whatever Ciro does I will back him, and whatever the team needs I will do," Galvin said. "I just got in there and tried to earn the boys and Ciro's trust, by working hard and training hard is all I wanted to do. "I just got in every day and tried to learn as much as I can, asking questions from the coaches and the boys. "I was very grateful Ciro put me in this early." Burton's unavailability will mark the third year in a row he will miss a Canterbury game to be 18th man, despite never entering the Origin field in that role. Canterbury lock Kurt Mann was also lock for Queensland in Origin I, with the situation having frustrated the Bulldogs in the past. "It's mixed feelings, but we want people in and around that arena. "If Burto comes back a better player and learns something out of those 10 days, it's great."
Perth Now
10-06-2025
- Sport
- Perth Now
New Bulldog relieved at first-up Canterbury reception
Lachlan Galvin has admitted he was relieved to be given a rousing reception by Canterbury fans, hopeful the door can now be closed on his Wests Tigers exit. After being the most talked about teen in rugby league for the past two months, Galvin was given a standing ovation in his first game for the Bulldogs on Monday. The 19-year-old's name was chanted behind the bench as he prepared to come on against Parramatta, while he was mobbed by fans after the 30-12 win. The playmaker was also applauded with his first touches of the football, before being mobbed when he scored a late try for the Bulldogs. Galvin's Tigers' exit has been one of the biggest talking points of the season, with his image clearly damaged in some quarters as a result of his public exit. Asked if he was relieved to be given such a welcome by a crowd of close to 60,000 on Monday, Galvin admitted he was. "It was (a relief). For the fans to get behind me (after) being here a week only is pretty cool," Galvin said. "That's all in the past now. "I just want to come over here and play good footy and enjoy my footy, that is the main reason I play and the reason I want to be here. "Walking over from the hotel (before the match) was pretty cool. It's going to be a good journey and something I want to be part of." Initially expected by coach Cameron Ciraldo to enter the club via reserve grade, Galvin won a bench spot in the NRL after impressing in his first days at training. He entered the field in the halves in the 57th minute, with off-contract No.7 Toby Sexton reverting to the hooker role. Galvin is now likely to be thrown straight into the starting halves alongside Sexton against South Sydney on Sunday, with Matt Burton on NSW State of Origin duties. "Whatever Ciro wants and whatever Ciro does I will back him, and whatever the team needs I will do," Galvin said. "I just got in there and tried to earn the boys and Ciro's trust, by working hard and training hard is all I wanted to do. "I just got in every day and tried to learn as much as I can, asking questions from the coaches and the boys. "I was very grateful Ciro put me in this early." Burton's unavailability will mark the third year in a row he will miss a Canterbury game to be 18th man, despite never entering the Origin field in that role. Canterbury lock Kurt Mann was also lock for Queensland in Origin I, with the situation having frustrated the Bulldogs in the past. "It's mixed feelings, but we want people in and around that arena. "If Burto comes back a better player and learns something out of those 10 days, it's great."
New Straits Times
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New Straits Times
#SHOWBIZ: Futuristic adventures of a brave, 'unloved' boy hero
MALAYSIA'S animated superkid Ejen Ali is back for another explosive science-fiction adventure on the silver screen. And while he is still 12 years old, he now looks a little stronger and taller, thanks to the harsh training that he undergoes in order to be a superspy. Everyone's favourite battle-hardened boy wonder of the future has embraced espionage technology that is more advanced and faces a most formidable foe whose actual form he is not sure of. Welcome to 'Ejen Ali The Movie 2' (EATM2), which once again sees the "unloved" youngster take on a phantom menace by the name of Ciro. As compared with 'Ejen Ali The Movie' in 2019, this sequel has more explosive action and a deeper, more immersive narrative experience. Enhanced physical appearances too, as viewers get to see Ali's more muscular frame and sharper face, as well as the lines on the faces of the older characters. Once again set in the futuristic city of Cyberaya, EATM2 sees Ali become the pilot for a high-stakes mission under Satria, an elite programme powered by an AI-assisted mecha suit. The mission takes a darker turn when the renegade Ejen Rizwan enlists Ali's help to uncover the true mastermind behind escalating threats in Cyberaya. Meanwhile, the mysterious hacker Neonimus resurfaces, driven by a personal vendetta against Ali. As Neonimus weaves a dangerous web of deception, every choice Ali makes becomes critical, determining not only his fate but the future of the city. Ali's Satria Project is aimed at producing a new generation of Mata agents who are able to combine the skills of all four Mata Cores, namely Techno, Neuro, Inviso and Kombat. Satria is a dynamic armoured suit equipped with combat pattern data from Mata's greatest agents and can be modified using ferrofluid technology to form special weapons according to mission needs. Ali's best friend Ejen Alicia has now been given a new role as the Iris user. Both of them are made to team up once again to confront Neonimus, who reveals that he is working for the insidious and mysterious Ciro, the deadliest enemy of Cyberaya to date. As for Rizwan, he is now teaming up with one-time baddies Dos and Trez to fight Mata's leadership for the sake of old grudges. Meanwhile, Mata's leadership is also facing a crisis, as the head of Cyberaya Datuk Othman has brought in Ejen Amir and Ejen Elle to work with the more senior Ejen Dayang and Ejen Ganz, and they don't see eye to eye. This opens up the opportunity for Ciro to penetrate Mata. Viewers might need to read up a little about Ejen Ali's characters and his animated TV series which has been on the small screen for almost a decade now to follow this movie effectively. This is because, the appearance of one-time regular Mata agents such as Rizwan and General Rama as renegades might not make sense unless one is aware of the developments that took place in the series' now-concluded Season 3. Nevertheless, if one has not been following the series, EATM2 can still be enjoyed on its own as its computer-generated special effects are world class. This is evident in the design of Iris and especially Satria, and when Ali and Alicia enter Satria to battle Ciro, the programme readily transforms them into upgraded versions of themselves. A lot of this echoes Disney's iconic science-fiction adventure in a computer, 'Tron', and its less-known sequel 'Tron Legacy', but EATM2's computer graphics are actually more crisper and clearer. While EATM2's scientific magic is a marvel to look at, its storytelling is loaded with emotions and one can really feel what the boy hero feels. Yes, our hero is brave, strong, fast and competent, but his world seems to be endlessly sad and threatened by unfortunate events. For a 12-year-old Ali lives a pretty harsh life, often barked at by his superiors with the notable exception of the motherly Ejen Dayang. He may have buddies like Alicia, Viktor and Sasi who share his love of video games, but in school he is often tormented by a fearsome teacher named Cikgu Munah. Nevertheless, viewers do find her rather cute and, in one scene, she even helps Ali batle evil Ciro! Perhaps, Ali's creators want to show kids that working life can be pretty cruel and unforgiving, and all of the "bashings" we get turn ordinary men into supermen. The friendship between Ali and Alicia, two cutesy but formidable teen agents, is interesting and comparable with that of Harry Potter and Hermione Granger in JK Rowling's famous novel series. Their dynamic combination as team mates gradually evolved from competitive frenemies into something more meaningful. As for the high-level politicking in Mata, it does reflect the real world too. As director Usamah once said, a large organisation like Mata cannot have everyone on the same page, and different groups within the organisation are bound to have different agendas. All this helps make Ali's world colourful and believable, thatwhich was exactly what Hogwarts was in the Harry Potter novels. Ejen Ali may look like a children's animated adventure on the surface, but its stories contain lots of deep and "adult" plots. NOW SHOWING EJEN ALI THE MOVIE 2 DIRECTOR Usamah Zaid Yasin
