German firm selling ‘weaponized malware’ to bad regimes: WikiLeaks

17 Sep 2014

1

Whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks on Tuesday released more information on controversial commercial surveillance tools; and criticised Germany for not preventing a ''weaponized malware'' developer from selling his product to countries with poor human rights records.

The malware is produced by German firm FinFisher, which used to be a part of the UK-based Gamma International.

WikiLeaks' latest Spy Files publication included some previously unreleased versions of the malware in question. It shows FinFisher can infect Apple OS X, Windows and Linux computers as well as Android, iOS, BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows Phone devices.

The files, originally obtained by a hacker going by the name Phineas Fisher in August, should be used to improve detection systems to protect people's PCs and mobiles, WikiLeaks said; but instead it is being sold to the wrong kind of regimes.

According to the leaks, FinFisher customers include law enforcement and government agencies in Australia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Estonia, Hungary, Italy, Mongolia, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Singapore, Slovakia, South Africa and Vietnam.

India is not on the list of Finfisher customers; but this is more indicative of administrative ignorance and apathy than any reluctance by the government to spy on its citizens or corporations.

''FinFisher continues to operate brazenly from Germany selling weaponised surveillance malware to some of the most abusive regimes in the world. The Merkel government pretends to be concerned about privacy, but its actions speak otherwise,'' said Julian Assange, WikiLeaks' editor-in-chief.

WikiLeaks says the files will help researchers uncover further human rights abuses related to FinFisher, which can be used to siphon data from machines and spy on communications, from email to Skype.

This backs up data from Citizen Lab, a Toronto-based non-profit that focuses on protecting activists online, which last year released details on alleged use of FinFisher by authorities in 25 countries.

The FinFisher suite of spy software was originally exposed through documents found in the offices of Egypt's secret police after former president Hosni Mubarak was deposed.

Since then, activists from Ethiopia and Bahrain, amongst other nations, claimed to have been targeted by governments using FinFisher.

WikiLeaks said Germany should take action to stop the malware spreading. ''Why does the Merkel government continue to protect FinFisher? This full data release will help the technical community build tools to protect people from FinFisher including by tracking down its command and control centres.''

FinFisher and its previous owner Gamma have previously claimed they only sold their products to 'responsible' governments, though researchers and activists believe the firm has lied about its customer list.

The wider fight against so-called ''lawful interception'' technologies continues. In the UK, Privacy International has been leading the charge, recently uncovering data implicating Swiss surveillance tech company Neosoft in ''trying to equip and train a brutal government unit in Bangladesh''.

Business History Videos

History of hovercraft Part 3...

Today I shall talk a bit more about the military plans for ...

By Kiron Kasbekar | Presenter: Kiron Kasbekar

History of hovercraft Part 2...

In this episode of our history of hovercraft, we shall exam...

By Kiron Kasbekar | Presenter: Kiron Kasbekar

History of Hovercraft Part 1...

If you’ve been a James Bond movie fan, you may recall seein...

By Kiron Kasbekar | Presenter: Kiron Kasbekar

History of Trams in India | ...

The video I am presenting to you is based on a script writt...

By Aniket Gupta | Presenter: Sheetal Gaikwad

view more