Exiled Russian Journalist's Phone Hacked With Pegasus Spyware

The phone of a prominent Russian journalist and critic of the Kremlin was infected with Pegasus spyware, according to new research. The notorious spying software developed by the Israeli company NSO Group was reportedly installed on the iPhone of Galina Timchenko, owner of the Russian independent media outlet Meduza, while she was in Berlin for a private conference with other Russian independent journalists living in exile. It is the first documented case of a Pegasus infection targeting a Russian citizen, according to Access Now, one of the nonprofits that investigated the hack. The attack took place in February, two weeks after the Russian government outlawed Meduza for its critical coverage of Vladimir Putin’s regime and the war in Ukraine, the researchers said. Meduza relocated its office to Latvia in 2014, and people living in Russia today can only access its website through a VPN. Meduza markets itself as one of the few Russian independent media outlets whose coverage remains free from control or censorship by the Kremlin.