Hidden away within a leaked database of thousands of numbers that includes some targeted by military-grade spyware is a phone number used by French President Emmanuel Macron.
Also present on the list, brought to light by the Pegasus Project, are the numbers of 14 French ministers – including foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and finance minister Bruno Le Maire – and Charles Michel, prime minister of Belgium at the time.
The presence of Macron’s number on the leaked list does not automatically mean the agency which placed it there attempted to deliver Pegasus or was successful in infecting his phone, but has triggered concerns about the danger posed by the cross-border use of spyware.
“If the facts are true, they are clearly very serious. All light will be shed on these media revelations,” Macron’s office said in a short statement to Le Monde. “Some French victims have already announced they would file complaints, and legal investigations will therefore be launched”.
The Israeli firm, NSO Group, has claimed that the database has “no relevance” to the company. On Tuesday evening, in a letter to the Pegasus Project, it also said that Macron was
— source thewire.in | Devirupa Mitra | 20/Jul/2021
