Facts vs. Fiction
Our clients know all about our products' operational success stories, and the vital role they play in their mission to save innocent lives. Due to the nature of their work, the details are rarely publicly disclosed. Such necessary discretion can create a lot of questions, mysteries, and baseless theories.
Here are just some of the common myths, and the actual truths
  • Fiction:
    NSO Group carries out surveillance
    Fact:
    We sell our technologies to selected vetted governmental clients. NSO does not operate its technology and is not exposed to the intelligence collected by its clients, nor to their targets.
  • Fiction:
    NSO Group sells its products to anyone who is willing to pay
    Fact:
    We sell only to selected vetted governments, and never to individual or non-governmental entities, subject to the approval of Israel’s Defense Ministry and to our own ethical business codes. We have often turned down potential clients who do not meet these standards, passing on business worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
  • Fiction:
    NSO Group products are used against an unlimited number of subjects, as a form of mass-surveillance
    Fact:
    Our technologies are target-centric. They are sold with a pre-set, hard-wired very limited cap on the number of suspects they can be used on.
  • Fiction:
    NSO Group products are used against political dissidents, activists and journalists
    Fact:
    Our clients are contractually obligated to use NSO Group products only against terrorists, criminals or similar malefactors.
  • Fiction:
    NSO Group has no way of ensuring its clients respect its ethical code
    Fact:
    While NSO is not involved in clients’ real-time use of our technologies, we thoroughly investigate any credible allegation of misuse. In such circumstances, we are contractually entitled to access tamperproof “audit logs” showing whether or not a specific mobile numbers were targeted by the client. If the logs reveal misuse, we shut down the system remotely. NSO have terminated 10 contracts to date, over concerns for human rights violations.
  • Fiction:
    NSO Group is a spyware company
    Fact:
    NSO is a technology company which develops and sells much needed cyber-intelligence software to lawful governmental authorities, providing them a critical, life-saving capability.
  • Fiction:
    NSO Group is a ‘hackers for hire’ or ‘mercenaries’ company
    Fact:
    NSO is a fully-regulated cyber-technology company, solely developing and selling software to lawful governmental authorities.
  • Fiction:
    Pegasus is THE industry's only cyber-intelligence tool
    Fact:
    NSO is the world's most known cyber intelligence company, but there are many other companies operating in this industry. Not every report on uses of cyber intelligence tools, is in fact related to NSO/Pegasus.