FAQs

Interested in learning more about NSO Group, including our technologies and governance procedures? Find answers to frequently asked questions about our company and products below.

  • To which entities NSO Group sell its products?

    We license our products only to selected vetted and legitimate government agencies for the sole and exclusive use of preventing and investigating major crimes and terrorism, and saving innocent lives in the age of encryption.

  • Does NSO Group operate its products?

    Like any other software provider that licenses its products, we do not operate our products ourselves or on behalf of our clients. Our role is limited to the provision of technical support and maintenance services for our clients.

  • What are NSO Group products used for?

    Our products are designed to be used only for lawful and necessary public safety and national security purposes. Our communication interception products are specifically designed for responsible use by law enforcement and intelligence agencies. They are also used in official humanitarian search and rescue missions. Our products, by design, are threat-specific, and cannot be used for mass surveillance.

  • How does NSO Group ensure its clients respect its ethical code?

    Our goal is to ensure that our clients use our products only in accordance with their own governing laws and for necessary contracted purposes. Our products are designed to be used only for lawful and necessary public safety and national security purposes.

    We take all reasonable steps to prevent and mitigate the risk and misuse of our products.

    We strongly condemn the misuse of technologies to target innocent civilians and others who are not reasonably suspected of engaging in criminal wrongdoing, and hold ourselves to the highest standards for ethical business, and human rights protections are embedded throughout all aspects of our work. We are committed to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and have developed a strong human rights policy to hold ourselves and our customers accountable. This includes:

    Human rights due diligence procedures to identify, prevent and mitigate the risks of adverse impacts on human rights through the misuse of NSO products.

    o Evaluating potential clients for past human rights performance and governance standards.
    o Strict contractual obligations requiring NSO’s clients to limit the use of our products to their intended purpose: To investigate serious crimes and terrorism, and to ensure that our products will not be used to violate human rights.
    o Specific attention to protect individuals or groups who might face elevated levels of risk of arbitrary digital surveillance and communications interception.
    o Periodic review of the company’s human rights governance framework by outside compliance experts.
    o A commitment to continued dialogue and outreach with all relevant stakeholders.

    NSO Group does not and will not tolerate any misuse of our software. All our clients are contractually obligated to cooperate in any investigation demanded from NSO Group. If misuse is confirmed, NSO Group will act swiftly to remotely shut down their system (‘Kill Switch mechanism’), and terminate their contract, as have been done in the past.