Apple Seeks To Drop Its Lawsuit Against Israeli Spyware Pioneer NSO (msn.com) 24
Apple asked a court Friday to dismiss its three-year-old hacking lawsuit against spyware pioneer NSO Group, arguing that it might never be able to get the most critical files about NSO's Pegasus surveillance tool and that its own disclosures could aid NSO and its increasing number of rivals. From a report: A redacted version of the filing in San Francisco federal court cited a July article in the Guardian, which reported that Israeli officials had taken files from NSO's headquarters. The newspaper said the officials asked an Israeli court to keep the action secret even from those involved in an earlier, still pending hacking suit against NSO filed by Meta's WhatsApp. Israeli ministry of justice communications that were hacked showed that officials were concerned about sensitive information reaching Americans, the newspaper said.
"While Apple takes no position on the truth or falsity of the Guardian Story described above, its existence presents cause for concern about the potential for Apple to obtain the discovery it needs," the iPhone maker wrote in its filing Friday. Israeli officials have not disputed the authenticity of the documents but have denied interfering in the U.S. litigation.
"While Apple takes no position on the truth or falsity of the Guardian Story described above, its existence presents cause for concern about the potential for Apple to obtain the discovery it needs," the iPhone maker wrote in its filing Friday. Israeli officials have not disputed the authenticity of the documents but have denied interfering in the U.S. litigation.
So will NSO (Score:1)
Re:So will NSO (Score:4, Informative)
Re: So will NSO (Score:2, Flamebait)
That, along with security theater, is pretty much the entirety of apple's strategy. Rather than create an actually secure product, just pretend its anti-competitive walled garden is a security feature. Nevermind that there are gaps between the bushes, just hide them and sue anybody who knows about them.
Those of us who aren't appletologists will recall how apple tried to DMCA and sue jailbreakers until the government told them to fuck off.
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Not a chance. (Score:5, Insightful)
First, NSO would need to show that Apple's suit was without merit. Apple leaving the game because they could only hope to achieve a pyrrhic victory in court is not evidence that Apple's case was frivolous or without merit, just not in Apple's best interests.
Beyond that, while NSO certainly loves the reputation boost they receive in this, they might not want their core business model held up to too much scrutiny in a US court. You know they're not criminals. I know they're not criminals. Apple certainly views things differently. US Courts can't pre-judge the case and frankly, none of the players best interests are served by putting this in front of another court.
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they mostly work for governments and we call them justice departments
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So in this analogy it would be like the FBI hiring Smith & Wesson to do hits on fugitives? I think that's a good way to look at it.
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they mostly work for governments and we call them justice departments
You might want to look at the list of governments they work with, there are some pretty ugly examples in there.
The "But they're bad guys!" argument won't work. (Score:2)
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NSO is an Israeli company and they were implicated in the murder of journalists in Saudi Arabia and Mexico. Like hell they're not criminals - maybe not in US jurisdictions yet, but NSO’s case is unique because it sells surveillance tools directly to government clients, and it’s plausible that it might be aware of their misuse. International legal frameworks are developing to hold companies accountable for providing tools used in human rights abuses, including targeted killings. They can't stan
Criminals have been tried and convicted. (Score:1)
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More likely they'll quietly get an investment from some closely-held company you never heard of, that makes that company 51% owner of NSO.
That company, of course, will be quietly majority-owned by some other closely-held company you never heard of.
And that company will be owned by Apple.
NSO will strike again. (Score:1)
If NSO doesn't hack Apple, someone else will. AMIRIGHT fellow Israeli's?
Did Apple have a real choice? (Score:3)
Deep state agencies use NSO software.
Nice company you have there. It'd be a shame if the IRS or SEC were to do an audit.
The Israeli Revenue Service? (Score:1)
nice to see this happen to Apple (Score:3)
You get a similar experience when you want to opt-out from marketing companies and data brokers, you have to give up the very information you are trying to protect. Not my fault that these businesses would not work on an opt-in basis.
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It sounds like you have absolutely no idea what this story is about. For starters, why don't you read the summary?
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> Apple Seeks To Drop Its Lawsuit Against Israeli Spyware Pioneer NSO... arguing that it might never be able to get the most critical files about NSO's Pegasus surveillance tool and that its own disclosures could aid NSO and its increasing number of rivals
Which part did I miss?
Obvious solution (Score:2)
You should do that. (Score:1)
Of course (Score:1)
They get carte blanche to kill Americans and attack American ships, why not keep hidden all the kompromat they have on American elected officials who do their bidding.
How 2 faced is israel? (Score:1)