EU to Launch Inquiry into Use of Pegasus Spyware
Week 6: February 7 to 11
EU to launch inquiry into use of Pegasus spyware
The European Parliament is set to hold a formal inquiry into the use of Pegasus spyware, a move that could result in some uncomfortable revelations for some of the EU’s member states.
The spyware has been used against opposition figures in at least two EU states, Poland and Hungary, but a full 12-month inquiry could reveal the extent of its use across the rest of the bloc. The Spanish government, in particular, may be nervous about any such inquiry; in 2020, it was reported in El Pais that the phones of top Catalonian independence politicians had been targeted by Pegasus. The German government is also known to have secretly purchased the spyware, according to DW.
But whether it was used in other EU countries is as yet unknown. In a meeting of the civil liberties committee last week, the Hungarian journalist Szabolcs Panyi, himself targeted with the spyware by the Viktor Orban’s government, told MEPs that the spyware was in use in other European countries. “We haven't established the suspicion that these countries abuse Pegasus on the scale that Hungary and Poland does," he said.
The inquiry was proposed by the liberal Renew Group, and has the support of the majority of parliamentarians, according to the Dutch MEP Sophie in 't Veld. On Thursday, in a sign of the growing unease about the use of the software, the EPP held a public hearing into the use of the software, which was developed by the Israeli firm NSO Group.
The hearing heard from the French investigative journalists Richard Laurent and Sandrine Regaud, who detailed their investigation into the hacking of thousands of opposition politicians, journalists, human rights activists, and others across the world:
“We have been able to identify hundreds of victims in more than 50 countries. Amongst those victims, we already identified 180 journalists, but also tens of human rights defenders, heads of government, heads of state, doctors, university staff, researchers, and lawyers.”
Among the victims of Pegasus hacking is alleged to be the French president Emmanuel Macron, though the NSO Group has denied that he has been targeted by the software. Any inquiry is sure to look further into the targeting of Macron and other heads of state.
“This is not about national security, it is about the rule of law,” said MEP Jeroen Lenaers. “It is not about being allowed or not allowed to use technology to fight organized crime or terrorism… this is about the abuse of technology for political gain.”
But, of course, using high-tech surveillance software for the purposes of national security is not necessarily always within the law. Last week, parliament retroactively legalized mass data collection by Europol after it had been ordered by the European Data Rights Supervisor (EDPS) Wojciech Wiewiórowski to delete huge amounts of personal data that the EDPS said was collected illegally. Wiewiórowski called the decision to retroactively legalise the data collection as a direct threat to his mandate.
And France, the holder of the EU presidency, is embroiled in its own surveillance scandal. The investigative non-profit Disclose revealed in December that France had approved the export of surveillance software to the regime of Abdel Fattah el-Sisi in Egypt, and, prompted by a request by the French Green MEP Mounir Satouri, Ursula von der Leyen has written to the French government to “to clarify the circumstances of these cases and their compliance with EU export regulations.”
So there are surveillance scandals on multiple fronts, but an inquiry into Pegasus could lead to some explosive revelations. If you want to know more about Pegasus, the French investigative outlet Forbidden Stories, where Laurent and Rigaud work, has a comprehensive list of all the major stories broken on the spyware so far.
Frontex suspends multi-million travel agency contract just two weeks after signing
The EU’s controversial border agency Frontex confirmed on Friday that it was suspending its multi-million contract with an Estonian travel agency, just two weeks after it announced it had been awarded. Frontex cited “unexpected difficulties with travel arrangements for standing corps personnel” as the reason for the suspension in an email to EUobserver journalist Nikolai Nielsen.
The hefty €15m contract was awarded to Baltic Tours, a small travel agency based in Estonia with historical connections to the Estonian Centre Party. The contract must have been seen as quite a coup, given the agency’s recent modest performance - in 2017, it reportedly recorded profits of €14,998. It’s not often a company gets awarded a contract worth 1,000 times its reported annual profits.
The founder of Baltic Tours, Mait Metsamaa, a controversial businessman and former deputy mayor of Tallinn, was murdered in 1999 as he was facing charges of manslaughter for allegedly killing two people in a car accident. His murder was ordered by the businessman Vadim Polištšuk, and was the result of a dispute over the privatization of Tallinn’s Central Market shopping center. Metsamaa had long been suspected of corruption, but no charges were ever brought against him. Baltic Tours is now run by his ex-wife Viive Metsamaa.
Metsamaa’s son, Mathias-Mait Metsamaa, made headlines in Estonia recently for his involvement in alleged large-scale drug trafficking. He was part of a group accused last year of possession of drugs worth €2.1m.
The award of such a major contract - one seemingly so important to the proper functioning of Frontex’ new standing corps - to a small Estonian agency with such controversial links will again raise questions about decision-making within Frontex. Frontex received five other bids for the contract; I’m seeking more details on why it opted to select Baltic Tours.
This latest embarrassment comes after revelations of lavish spending on travel arrangements for Frontex Director Fabrice Leggeri and on a gala dinner in Warsaw.
ICYMI
Meta Is Absolutely Not Threatening to Leave Europe
Meta is not wanting or “threatening” to leave Europe and any reporting that implies we do is simply not true. Much like 70 other EU and US companies, we are identifying a business risk resulting from uncertainty around international data transfers.
France under EU pressure for surveillance sales to Egypt
Sautouri, along with a handful of other EU lawmakers, had in December demanded the European Commission take action after a report by Disclose, a French-based media outlet and advocacy group, that France authorised the export of surveillance software supplied by a number of French companies. The inquiry throws the spotlight on close ties between some European governments and the al-Sisi regime, which has been accused of extrajudicial executions and torture - but also works hand-in-hand with the EU on curbing irregular migration and clamping down on terror networks.
EU urged to halt flow of ‘dark money’ into groups opposing LGBTQ and women’s rights
“I was truly startled when last year our team of feminist investigative journalists discovered that, in at least eight European countries, women were provided with an unproven, unethical treatment to ‘reverse’ medical abortions. These activities were pushed by US religious extremists.” But no action has yet been taken in any European country.
EU contracts
A lucrative €27.3m contract for the management of the European Parliament's early childhood centre in Brussels was awarded to a company where the spouse of a sitting MEP holds a senior management position. Only two companies bid for the tender, so there is no suggestion of impropriety on behalf of the MEP, but I have contacted the General Court of the European Court of Justice to ask for more details about its review of the process. The award of the contract was the subject of an FOIA request last week, with the response saying that a “detailed analysis of all legal aspects
linked to the possible disclosure of the requested documents is still
ongoing.”
Next week…
On Tuesday morning, representatives of the European Commission and the Council of Ministers will be giving statements before the European Parliament on the surveillance of politicians, prosecutors, lawyers and journalists in EU member states, with the statements expected to focus particularly on Pegasus spyware. The statements are expected between 9am and 11.50am CET.
On Wednesday morning, Josep Borrell, the EU’s top diplomat, will address parliament on the ongoing Ukrainian crisis, with a debate to follow. Borrell is due to begin his address at 9am CET.